Flame and Feather
by SugarRides
Summary: When Flame and Feather meet the roads to darkness will cease. Everyone has been saved, separated and redeemed. The evil has been vanquished but darkness still lingers and a new threat arrives as a new journey begins. (Takes place after KH3)
1. Dawn's End

**A/N: Ahhh okay so I recently got back into Kingdom Hearts, and I really REALLY wanted to write something for it that is a bit different than the fanfiction I've been reading lately. This is more of an introduction chapter but please feel free to let me know what you think of it so far!**

Blair yawned loudly into the early morning air, the sound nearly carried off by a gentle wind as she shut her green eyes, small tears forming at the edges of them in tiredness.

Blinking away her blurred vision, Blair tugged her fishing pole curiously, causing the white bobber to dart across the lake's surface like a luminescent bug.

The fishing was slow today.

Carefully, Blair began to reel in her line, giving her pole a few more gentle tugs in an attempt to entice a curious fish to her bobber. The silence of the water was answer enough as she finished reeling in her hook, pausing momentarily to look over it only to find the bait still snugly attached.

A little disheartened with her luck, Blair began to maneuver through the dark water of the lake, shivering as the chilly water teased the back of her knees. Holding her fishing pole above her head she shifted her feet delicately along the rocky bottom, starting for a moment as a disturbed crayfish scurried past her toes.

Narrowing her eyes, Blair continued her trek, feeling out her footsteps more cautiously, now hyperaware for anymore creatures she might accidentally step on before reaching the dock.

Placing her fishing rod down on the old wooden surface of the harbor, she shifted to palm the wood before hauling herself out of the water with a grunt, the sounds of her awkward splashing disrupting the soft birdsong of the morning.

With a sigh of relief, Blair found her balance as best she could on numb toes before allowing herself a good stretch. Her back popped softly as she moved her arms, throwing them across her chest to work out the cramps that had been building in them after having to support her fishing pole for so long.

Giving her arms a final stretch and a minor shake to relieve the soreness in them, Blair dropped to give a few squats in an attempt to chase the cold from her legs.

Satisfied with removing the stiffness that haunted her limbs, she further bent to retrieve a dark colored towel from the top of her aged tackle box. Tossing it onto the small dock's surface Blair stepped onto it, yanking the free ends of the towel up to dry off her legs and feet.

Once dry, she attempted to suppress a shiver as she hurriedly tugged on her socks, shortly followed by her shoes before positioning herself at the edge of the dock.

With both hands, she gripped the wet ends of her navy, knee length, shorts and began to twist the material, wringing out any excess water that had gathered there. She set to work on smoothing out the wrinkled fabric before wringing it out again then turned her body to repeat the process on the other side.

Pleased with her clean up, Blair tossed the used towel next to her tackle box, making a mental note that she'd return for it later before turning her gaze to face the horizon of the lake.

Soft tones of pink and orange decorated the edges of the purple stained lake as light blue beginning to fade into the dark navy of the sky. A promise that dawn would soon be upon her.

A frown painted along Blair's face at the sight.

Tearing her eyes away from the impending sunrise she instead set to remove her unused hook from her former fishing line. With patient fingers, she worked against the knot, providing tugs in just the right places before the line crumpled easily into a neat string in her hands.

Dipping her hands into the lake, she set to removing the sardine she had been using as bait, wary of the sharp hook lurking just beneath it. Once finished stroking the hook clean of any unsightly residue she returned the hook back to her tackle box, resting her unarmed fishing rod on top of it before sitting at the edge of the dock.

"I wonder how long I'll be able to keep doing this…" Blair drifted, the question released to the wind as her mind tugged at the thought she had been trying to keep at bay all morning.

The Mark of Mastery exam.

Naturally, it was a great achievement to even be participating in the exam according to Master Inxe, but Blair couldn't help but feel a little underwhelmed by it.

While she had made certain she was well prepared for this day, training and taking out every stray Heartless or Nobody that threatened their world, it all seemed to fall flat in comparison to what she knew of the Keyblade Masters of old.

Once upon a time, Keyblade Wielders and Masters were able to travel to the outside worlds freely, in hopes of protecting them from danger and provide a guiding light to them in their darkest hour.

However, things didn't operate that way in her world.

Master Inxe, as well as the Masters before him, set the rule to keep their world entirely cut off from the others, making entry as well as leaving impossible save for one week out of the year.

This special occurrence was for the Mark of Mastery exam, a grand opportunity for young Keyblade Wielders to prove themselves worthy of the title Master.

The test itself was relatively simple, after testing the strength of their heart, each prospect would be gifted an automatic digital counter and would be sent on a journey to the outside worlds. During their week long pilgrimage their task was to procure various reports from other Masters scattered about in their own worlds, as well as destroy as many agents of darkness as they could. If one managed to get the digital counter to reach one thousand, they would be granted the title of Master.

Blair sighed grumpily at the thought of the exam.

The title, Master, meant nothing to her. If she could not utilize the rank's full ability of protecting the worlds whenever the need should arise, then what was the point?

Blair felt she would be better suited to being useful outside of her own world, with her strength she knew that she could help any world that struggled with darkness if only given the choice of freedom. Eliminating Heartless and Nobodies was a need, perfect for the exam but afterward, one with authority to do so should root out the cause of their appearance and that was what she truly wished to do.

Master Inxe, of course, would never allow her to do this.

She had been chided on multiple occasions by her mentor upon suggestion, that it was no longer their responsibility to meddle in the affairs of the other worlds, even with the intention of helping them.

Defeating Heartless was a charitable enough act, even if only once a year, but Blair had a hard time accepting the fact that her only duty as a Keyblade Wielder, was to protect only her own world and accept its reclusive nature.

Disgruntled by the thought of never being able to fully realize her ambitions and the uneasiness that came paired with it, Blair attempted to shift her focus on the sky above her. Stars that seemed to speckle every free space in the vast blackness appeared to have lessened significantly, and she set to work on counting the ones she was familiar with before they too were chased away by the rising sun.

Then it happened, radiant pink clouds clotted the sky, wefts of purple neatly tucked into the dark edges as a sharp orange peered from the horizon. Blair had seen this transition many times right here at the lake, and despite the similarity of each sunrise, she felt that they all looked different, each one holding a different promise.

It's what earned the town's namesake after all.

"Splendent Dawn," Blair said softly, the words rolling off her tongue so naturally it was as if she hadn't spoken at all.

The sight today was truly breathtaking to behold, but she still couldn't shake the feeling of dread that had enveloped her thoughts. Somewhere, deep down in her heart, her soul, even to her very core she knew that she did not want to live all her life here, spent in the shade of never ending morning.


	2. Exam

**_A/N: I'm so nervous! I hope this came out okay and I apologize for any grammar mistakes. I know this is more of a slow burn fic and its so hard not to skip ahead and write all the amazing team awesomeness that's sure to come but I promise it's on its way! So keep a lookout for chapter three and let me know what you think about all of this so far! Thanks for reading! ^-^_**

The sound of a snide giggle taunted Blair's ears as she fiddled with the dark teal armor on her neck that overlapped onto her shoulders.

"Well, well looks like Bait decided to show up after all." The female voice taunted as Blair rolled her eyes at the nickname, unseen by the angle of her powder blue bangs.

"You know, I'm actually really surprised she showed up looking like _that_." The voice taunted once more making her spare a glance in the direction of the insults.

An attractive looking girl with shiny brown hair that reached to her hips, tucked into pigtails, was eyeing her, a smug expression stretched across her face.

Blair flitted her gaze away, distracting herself by pulling at the material of her gloves in an attempt to appear oblivious.

She should have known that the voice had belonged to Triche; the unimaginative nicknames for people she disliked should have been a dead giveaway.

"I know, does she think she's fooling anyone by wearing her armor to the exam? Everyone knows Bait isn't worthy of being called Master." A male voice chimed in and Blair narrowed her eyes as she snapped the glove into place, the sting of the hearty snap clearing her head.

Now that the owner of the previous voice had been identified, it was easy to recognize the second as Triche's toady brother, Killian.

She glanced once more in their direction.

Taking in their forms, Blair couldn't help but feel that it was a shame that both of her instigators were rather attractive, sharing the same traits of practically perfect brown hair and light eyes, their outfits carefully chosen to accent the best physical parts of them.

A pity that their beautiful features were nothing but a guise to hide their cruel personalities.

"Master or not I just hope she doesn't stink up the place, some of us actually _like_ spending time outside of that nasty lake." Triche sneered, tightening one of the red hair ties that held up her fitted pigtail, a glint of cherry red nails shimmering in the sun.

Finally satisfied with fidgeting with her own clothes, Blair began to walk forward, cobblestone clicking pleasantly beneath her shoes as she ghosted past Triche. Her audible gasp of offense not going unnoticed as Blair proceeded to take her place at one of the low rising platforms centered within the town square that served as the usual place for such important ceremonies.

"Oh look, Bait thinks she's so bad that she can just ignore us like that." Triche scoffed hotly and Blair tilted her head away, hoping to hide the smirk that touched her face.

"Maybe she's just too stupid to understand that we're talking about her." Killian sneered, running his hand through thick waves of hair.

"I guess we'll just have to fix that then." Triche said and Blair steeled herself, mentally preparing herself for the fight that was sure to take place.

"That's enough." A voice, armed with authority, spoke out and all three of them whipped their heads in the direction of the owner.

An older man, with few wrinkles and a grayed beard that followed the length of his chest gave Triche a hard look, a firm hand on her shoulder.

"M-master Inxe!" Triche stuttered, her face beginning to turn red from embarrassment, ashamed that she had been caught.

Clad in an autumn colored robe with a decorative brown sash tied around his waist, Master Inxe removed his hand from Triche's shoulder, the gold trim at the edges of his robe sparkling faintly.

"Now, is that any way for a Master to talk? I advise that you save your jeers for after the exam for when you can back them up." Master Inxe chided, an air of playfulness in his tone as he walked forward leaving a disgruntled Triche to pat down her red cheeks as Killian shot him a glare behind his back.

Blair grimaced.

While their Master's interruption was appreciated, Blair knew that it didn't matter whether or not Triche passed the exam. Triche felt it was her right to complain loudly about Blair, as long as she was in her sight or at the very least until some other poor soul came within her range.

With Master Inxe now present and standing in the middle of the square, Triche hurried to stand atop her own platform just as he cleared his throat. Blair straightened her posture respectfully, looking down at her Master with barely restrained anticipation.

"Welcome everyone!" Master Inxe's voice rang out and the crowd that had gathered, in hopes to see the examination take place, quieted.

"As you all know, today marks an exciting time for my young apprentices Blair and Triche." Master Inxe began, stroking his beard in pride as he surveyed the crowd.

"And that is because for the first time in three years, the road to our world will open again. Their journey throughout the outside worlds will test not only the strength and determination of these two young women but it will also test the true will of their hearts." He explained before fixating his gaze towards Triche who visibly stiffened out of the corner of Blair's eye.

"The exam that they will be undertaking is known as the Mark of Mastery. It is a test of growth and it serves as a measurement of the darkness as well as light in one's heart." His gaze then turned to Blair and she held his gaze respectfully, a prideful smile threatening to twitch at the corner of his mouth.

"Now, since this is our first opening in such a long time, I feel it necessary to explain that a new rule has been added." Master Inxe paused and Blair felt she might turn as blue as her hair from holding her breath.

"Over the passage of these three years I've sensed great darkness that's been growing steadily beyond our world. A great darkness and a great light as the never-ending battle is fought naturally…but…I fear there is a new enemy other than the Heartless and Nobodies that wander the precipice of every world. And this is where that rule comes in-"

"What is this new threat?" Blair blurted out, nearly biting her tongue in shame as she was quickly silenced with a look from Master Inxe.

"This new threat _Blair_ ," Master Inxe began and Blair felt herself shrink a little at the mention of her name, reminding herself to be patient as he continued.

"Is something I've been trying to research during your apprenticeship under me. This dark energy appears to be the work of various beasts whom are called Malice. They are fearsome creatures with a strong core that can house some of the most powerful and most wicked of hearts." He said grimly, his eyes turning stony as he directed his attention to the crowd once more.

"I have felt these great beasts' presences afflicting various worlds that have been burdened by negativity as well as an outcropping among a few of the more peaceful worlds. Which is why the extended rule during this exam is to defeat at least five of them on top of the traditional one thousand heartless." Master Inxe paused once more, giving time for the crowd to quiet down from their uprising of hushed whispers.

"Now! Without further ado, it is time to begin the first half of this examination. Wielders, please summon your keyblades."

Blair felt her heart pulse strongly as she readily swiped her arm upward and across her chest as a diamond shaped keyblade, the color of crystalized sea foam appeared in her hand.

Extending it outward, she admired how the dark tip of it spread out like a bird's wing before bowing into its powder blue diamond formation, two dark green wings jutting out just before an elegantly angular hilt. A cute emerald green ball paired with bird feathers dangled from a short chain at the bottom, serving as its charm.

Valkyrie's Song it was called, a keyblade born with a warrior's spirit, making it very easy to use in combination attacks in battle with the hidden ability to transform into a deadly spear.

With her blade successfully drawn, Blair slid her curious green eyes to Triche whom stood in a similar stance.

Triche's keyblade seemed to match the soft orange of the sun with a delicate red metal winding around it in an intricate pattern that was hypnotizing to follow, a sharp flower looking pattern on the tip of it.

However, before Blair could deduce anything more about Triche's weapon, Master Inxe spoke.

"Triche, Blair, the two of you will face each other in combat. This is to test your ability at facing an adversary of equal strength and how your heart's true nature will respond to the challenge."

Blair couldn't help but frown as she jumped off of the risen platform, taking her place beside it as she turned to face Triche's direction.

"Do you have any objections, Blair?"

Blair jolted at the sound of her name as she turned to look towards Master Inxe, a bit embarrassed that her hesitance must have been obvious.

"No, sir." Blair replied before readying herself, taking on a more defensive stance.

"Heh, she's probably just worried about how hard I'm going to beat her." Triche sneered, twirling her keyblade about her like a baton.

"This challenge will yield no winners, nor losers Triche. You do not fight for competition but to test your own strengths." Master Inxe corrected her.

Triche rolled her eyes and Blair watched as the twirling of her keyblade stopped before she proceeded to put herself into an odd pose, not really defensive, but strange. The stance was almost as if Triche was posing for a picture and the look of it did nothing but fan the flames of agitation within Blair's blood.

"Begin!" Master Inxe yelled and the crowd around them seemed to come alive as a thunderous roar of applause assaulted Blair's ears. Cheers and taunts coming from all around her but the noise to distorted to understand what anyone was actually saying.

Blair stepped to the side, eyeing Triche who seemed happy to be basking in the attention of the garble of noise and promptly narrowed her eyes.

While Master Inxe had said that this exam wasn't a competition, the crowd certainly had no issue trying to make it more than a simple sparring session.

Distracted by the noisy crowd and Triche's ridiculous behavior, Blair hardly had enough time to step out of the way of a red whip descending upon her.

An audible snap echoed in the air as debris flew up from where she had just been standing, the ground beneath it damaged from the force of the hit.

Blair rolled away as the barbed whip descended again, cracking loudly before it retracted swiftly. Following it, Blair found that the whip was in fact an extension of Triche's keyblade whom wielded it like a child with a dancer's ribbon.

So it was like that, was it?

Blair took in a deep breath, concentrating on the smooth hilt of her keyblade before twirling it and with a sturdy tap to the ground; it elongated, forming itself into a spear. The end shining brilliantly from the crystalized rock at the tip housed between two spread wings.

With a grunt, she dashed forward, aiming to close some distance between herself and Triche before throwing her spear straight into the air above her. Stepping forward at an angle, Blair balanced herself as she handspringed backward, the biting snap of Triche's snake like whip sounding just in front of her.

Righting herself, Blair caught her spear expertly before dashing forward again before bending into a slide, utilizing her footwork in an attempt to knock Triche off balance.

Triche dodged Blair's physical attack before throwing up the fortified hilt of her keyblade to block Blair's spear that had attempted to knock her blade out of her hand. Triche's eyes widened at the close call just as Blair jabbed forward again with her spear, testing Triche's balance as she pulled up her arm to block once more.

In anticipation of this, Blair quickly withdrew her spear before twirling it to hit Triche squarely in the chest with the blunt end.

Triche stumbled, startled by the sudden hit as anger flashed across her features, shooting Blair a dark glare.

Retracting her weapon, Triche forced it forward sharply, lashing out at Blair in a quick flurry of movements causing Blair to jump away as the whip skimmed across her clothes and shoulder armor like an agitated cobra.

As Blair attempted to distance herself from the onslaught of attacks, she overstepped just as the whip snapped by her face, nicking her cheek and unleashing a sharp pain from its barbed tongue.

Blair flinched, almost losing her balance, as she handspringed forward out of the way of the next crack of the whip, debris flying up behind her.

Dashing forward, Blair attempted to close their distance once more, holding her spear tightly in her hands as she tried to judge which direction the whip would descend next.

Taking advantage of the distraction she had set for Blair, Triche retreated, walking backwards in the artful manner of a dancer before yanking her whip forward once more.

Blair aimed her spear, not wanting to be stuck in the same dodge and roll pattern she had been doing their whole fight, and hurled her weapon forward, straight towards Triche.

The spear soared soundly and in an awkward movement, Triche avoided being the spear's target, letting up on her assault.

Blair summoned her keyblade once more, the weapon still stretched to its spear form, and Blair reeled back her arm aiming to throw it again when Triche flicked her wrist.

The whip snapped forward, securing itself to just under the tip of the Blair's spear, wrapping snuggly around it as Blair attempted to regain control of it.

"What?" Blair gasped in surprise just before she was unceremoniously yanked forward by the whip's hold on her weapon. Placing both of her hands on her spear; Blair stood her ground as she glanced up toward Triche only to see the girl grinning wickedly at her.

"Like reeling in a stupid fish." Triche taunted and Blair narrowed her gaze just as another yank pulled her forward.

Darting her eyes to the snug end of the whip attached to her spear then to Triche, Blair sprinted forward, gaining just enough ground on Triche before stopping.

With only a short window of time to act, Blair twirled before stepping on the part of the whip that had remained dormant near the ground. Triche was yanked forward, letting out a surprised squeak as she caught herself.

Standing her ground, Blair stepped forward, once more giving the whip another ungracious yank as Triche attempted to pull her weapon out from under Blair. Sensing an opportunity, Blair stepped forward again and hurled her spear towards Triche, whip still tightly wrapped around it.

Triche, who had become enraged by Blair's weight upon her weapon, didn't see Blair's spear coming until it whizzed by her face with such force that it stunned her into complete stillness. A few strands of brown hair fell from Triche's head before being swiftly carried off by the wind, directing the girl's gaze away from Blair as a look of horror became apparent on her face.

"Enough!" Master Inxe called out, the crowd that had fallen relatively quiet during the middle of their spar roared to life again.

Blair turned then, taking her eyes off of her opponent to bow in courtesy to Master Inxe when a searing pain latched onto her ankle just before it was jerked out from underneath her.

She landed hard, bumping her knees painfully into cobblestone, her elbow connecting with the ground so hard that she fell a second time from the ill distributed weight.

Dazed, she looked down at her ankle to see that Triche's whip had latched its barbed length onto her.

A gleam of anger touched her eyes as Blair looked up to see Triche smirking down at her.

"Are you deaf? He said enough!" Blair yelled, gingerly picking herself back up, wincing as she eased her hand up to stroke the newly bruised flesh of her elbow.

" _Ohhh_ , he did? You know, it's just so hard to hear over this crowd." Triche laughed, false surprise coloring her face before withdrawing her whip and turning her gaze to Master Inxe for verification.

When he nodded, obviously not pleased with what had transpired, Triche simply shrugged but the snide look in her eye told Blair she knew exactly when Master Inxe had called their match. It was a low thing to do and Blair felt humiliation touch her cheeks as they reddened before turning her gaze back to her Master.

"Congratulations you both did well. I'm sure this spar has been a great learning experience for the both of you. Now…" Master Inxe paused for effect, his arms spreading outward with his palms outstretched.

However, whatever he was about to say next, never came.

In that moment the ground began to shake so violently that Blair fell backward, falling squarely on her backside as the orange of the sun suddenly turned crimson, turning the entire sky an illuminated scarlet.

Panic seemed to burst from every corner of the surrounding crowd as orange and white meteors rushed across the heavens in a disturbing display of beauty.

Confused and frightened, Blair swiveled her head back and forth, attempting to figure out what was happening when a distinct voice called out to her.

"Look out- Bait!"

Just as Triche's voice reached her, a loud thud shook the earth once more, vibrating underneath her just as a massive shadow covered Blair's figure.

Startled, Blair looked in front of her; a massive black hoof that seemed to be glistening was just mere inches from the bottom of her legs and she felt a cold stone drop in her stomach.

The size of the hoof must have been at least the length of Blair herself, if not bigger.

Slowly, she dragged her eyes upward, cold fear freezing in her veins as she met with the creature's face.

Its body was a bulky mass the color of the darkest night, its skin continuously moving like a hoard of ants, with a huff its mouth gaped open, red and bright like hot coals as layers of white sharp teeth resided within. Two long horns curved inward around the beast's head, almost like a beetle's pinchers as it turned its terrifying face to glance down at Blair.

Meeting with bright red eyes, Blair gulped audibly as she scrambled to her feet, shock hitting her to the core as her keyblade manifested itself into her hand almost automatically.

The creature groaned, a deep sound that echoed off the walls of the city square, as dark smoke billowed from its mouth.

Blair took a few cautious steps backwards as the creature analyzed her.

Scrambling for a course of action against such a beast, a flash of something moving caught Blair's attention.

It was a red cloth, decorated with gold trim, securely attached to one of the many teeth of the creature and Blair felt the world go quiet.

There was no way…it couldn't be…

Master Inxe?


	3. Malice

_**A/N: This chapter may be subject to updates with the impending release of Kingdom Hearts 3 in terms of dialogue or some of the character's appearances (though I'm still very skeptical that the game will be released in 2018, Square Enix has hurt me to many times before XD) but if it DOES happen I'll be sure to update the look of the main characters or their mannerisms in accordance to the game. For now I'm just pulling it all out of my head so we'll see how everything goes!**_

 _ **Also, thank you so much to wonderful people who have reviewed this! You really motivated me during this chapter's creation and I couldn't be more grateful, writing is hard but hearing your kind words makes it all worth it! *spews a fountain of hearts* And as always thanks for reading!**_

Blair rushed forward, her keyblade formed into a spear as her arm poised to strike the beast in front of her when an orange blade blocked her path.

"Triche?" Blair questioned, surprise flashing across her features as she fumbled with her spear, nearly dropping it from the odd angle.

"Don't! That thing is Master Inxe!" Triche exclaimed, her brown eyes widening as she darted her gaze between Blair and the beast behind her.

Blair looked upward and with a swift movement shoved Triche to the side, separating herself enough to avoid a massive hoof slamming into the ground where they once stood.

"What are you talking about?" Blair yelled, forming her stance into a guarded one as she waited for another potential deflection from Triche.

"I'm telling you that _thing_ ….it's got to be a Malice but…it's also Master Inxe. I saw him transform into it!" Triche explained as she shifted her body to face Blair defensively.

Blair looked up once again, anticipating another attack but the Malice seemed too preoccupied with tossing its head around as if disturbed.

She had initially thought the same thing as Triche, after all the coat that hung from one of the beast's teeth was undeniably her Master's but…

Blair turned away from the creature as she took in the red tinged sky, smoke and the glowing cinders of the beast's breath dancing in the wind. Terrified shouts reached her ears and giving a small glance around her saw that their earlier spectators were scrambling over themselves, fleeing for their lives in search of a safe haven.

Blair gripped her weapon tightly.

"If what you say is true, then we need to take him down." Blair called to Triche, backing up slowly as she turned her attention back to the Malice who was now casting some sort of fire spell.

"What? No…we can't, he might be a mindless Malice right now but he's still our Master!" Triche argued, refusing to shift from her position.

"And this is our home Triche; we're supposed to be protecting it from these creatures! Look, I know this is hard and I'm not sure why Master Inxe turned into this thing or if taking him down will bring him back but we can't just leave it alone!" Blair shot back.

Brandishing her spear, Blair twirled it and in a swift movement locked it back into its original keyblade form.

Refusing to wait for Triche's reply, she dashed forward again, ready to strike the beast's hoof when suddenly a red whip latched around her torso, pinning her arms painfully to her sides.

Fumbling once more Blair dropped her weapon, the blade clinking noisily against cobblestone before disappearing.

"What are you doing?" Blair cried out, the bite of the whip causing her to wince as white-hot pain seared through her arms.

"I won't let you!" Triche growled, the whip's hold tightening as Blair began to struggle against her painfully barbed bonds.

"Triche, look around you! If we don't do something then this world is done for!" Blair reasoned before being yanked roughly to the side in response, causing her to lose her footing.

Blair's head cracked against the cobblestone street, lights dancing behind her eyes as a short shock overtook her system. When it finally registered, a sharp cry of pain escaped her throat as a hard throbbing pulsed through the side of her face.

"Then so be it!" Triche threatened, raising her voice over Blair's moans of agony.

Blair opened an eye, her vision swimming from such a hard fall as she attempted to focus enough to look at Triche. She blinked; Triche was trembling, her knees knocking together so violently it was a miracle she was standing at all. Blair tried to narrow her focus into opening her other eye but even in her condition, she could clearly see the fear radiating off Triche.

Shifting her gaze towards the temporarily forgotten Malice, Blair tensed against her bonds as she mustered the strength to roll to the side as a flaming meteor slammed into the earth next to her.

The monster's mouth was now pointed to the sky, expelling meteors from it like a fountain, the spell shooting out of its mouth as it sent various flaming balls out in a circular pattern.

"Triche what are you doing? Hurry up and get rid of that thing!" Killian's voice rang out above the chaos.

"Listen to him Triche!" Blair pleaded, not even bothering to look behind her as she pushed herself into a kneeling position.

The Malice stopped then, tilting its head to its natural position before shifting its gaze in the direction of the arguing wielders. Its red eyes glowed furiously as it opened its mouth, showing off the heated red mass inside as a menacing growl escaped its throat.

"Both of you shut up!" Triche screamed and Blair felt the whip tighten around her once more and she grunted from the barbs digging into her skin.

The beast huffed, black smoke exiting its mouth as wisps of it rose to the sky creating large darkened clouds. An odd hissing sound touched Blair's ears, the noise making her heart begin to flutter in panic as her gaze remain locked onto the beast.

In this position she couldn't wield her keyblade, much less dodge at point blank range, she would be powerless if the Malice decided to launch an attack on her now.

As if hearing her panicked thoughts, the Malice shifted to lower its head, contemplating Blair before opening its mouth widely. She shrunk back against the intense heat that followed and watched with horror as a light began to gather in the center of the molten mouth.

Just as Blair closed her eyes, desperate for Triche to come to her senses a loud explosion shook the earth once more; an off course meteor had fallen from the sky, shattering into several pieces upon contact.

A blinding white light followed, showering every surface as Blair fell to her knees, bracing herself for the end of whatever caused it.

A large gust of wind rose from the aftershock of the hit, catching Blair by surprise as the intensity of it tossed her easily into the air.

As she descended back to the ground, seeking to catch herself, she reached forward only to be surprised to find that her arms had been freed. Making contact with the ground Blair lifted her head quickly, trying to process what exactly had happened as she attempted to lift herself up before falling, her arms aching from the earlier struggle against Triche.

Complacent with her position on the ground Blair looked side to side, trying to take in the scene around her.

Most of the crowd had successfully left the square, the sky was still red and the Malice was still present but just a short distance away she found Triche laying on her stomach.

The gust must have caused her to lose control of her weapon allowing Blair's freedom and now she was either unconscious from her impact with the ground or she was frozen with fear.

Blair shifted her gaze uncomfortably back to the beast that had caused all this and in an instant her green eyes widened.

Three figures were standing just a few yards away from her, positioned directly in front of the Malice.

There was a tall man, a brown haired boy and a redheaded girl who appeared to be talking amongst themselves, though their conversation was too far away for Blair to overhear.

Despite their sudden appearance, Blair hadn't noticed much else except for the weapons they were wielding and she felt her heart grow wings at the sight.

The boy held a multi colored, pastel keyblade, a star etched into the end of it while a circle overlapped it while the girl held a bright gold key, a colorful bouquet of flowers decorating the top.

Blair's eyes trailed to the man, raking down the spikey red head's form in search of a weapon when all three of them rushed forward.

The boy's jumped, their weapons snagging onto the protruding spines on the beast's limbs to attempt to climb atop it.

Blair then searched for the girl and found her slashing fearlessly at the front hooves of the Malice causing the creature to back up, distracted by the pain.

Once it lowered its head in attempt to cast a quick spell at the girl, the boys rushed forward and struck out against the creature's pincher like horns. Both on either side they set to work, their keyblades slashing against the reinforced horns as the creature groaned in agony.

Amazed at the well-choreographed assault Blair summoned her own keyblade, pushing herself into a kneeling position as she tried to find an opening.

Just as she tensed, ready to spring forward into a full sprint, a sharp snapping sound filled the air.

One of its horns had broken off, landing just to the right of its body with a thud just as the Malice released a blood curdling bellow, tossing its entire body about frantically, imitating the bucking of a horse.

The keyblade wielder's that had managed to break off the horn were trying to catch their balance on the unsteady body of the Malice while the girl at the bottom retreated a safe distance away.

Suddenly the Malice looked upward, its eyes blazing with fury as it unleashed a powerful spell from its gaping mouth. The spell had appeared ill timed though, as the casting was directly above it and instead of unfurling outward large meteors crashed onto the beast itself causing the wielders to flee from their perch.

Blair braced herself as the ground shook, sending a tremble through her just as the sound of shoes skidding against stone reached her ears.

Glancing forward she realized she had almost been crashed into by the man with the red hair.

"Whoa, sorry," He apologized, giving Blair only a half turn to deliver his apology before he froze in place. His eyes locked onto the keyblade in Blair's grasp before darting to meet her eyes.

"Hey, can you wield that thing?" He questioned, nodding to Blair's keyblade before turning his attention back to the battle taking place in front of them.

"Yes." Blair answered, reaffirming her response with a nod as she lifted herself off the ground with a wince.

"Mind helping us out then?" the man quipped and that was when she was able to catch a glimpse of his keyblade.

The key itself appeared to be in the shape and color of fire, curved into a blade as elegantly shaped spikes protruded from it, the hilt of it sporting a red chakram design.

"Do you know its weakness?" Blair asked attempting to ignore the swelling that had begun along her still throbbing head, instead focusing on the lesser sting that graced her arms.

"Not entirely sure, all Malice are different but were betting its weak point is either the horns or the mou-"

The man didn't have enough time to finish his sentence.

Without thinking, Blair rushed to protect herself as well as the stranger from an onslaught of correctly aimed meteors. Twirling her keyblade against the opposing force of the balls of fire, the blade elongated into a spear before she stepped back and jumped into the air to face another one. With a mighty slash, she sent the ball back toward the beast with the thinned staff of the spear, utilizing it like a bat smashing a baseball.

As the molten fireball soared back through the air, Blair noticed that the amount of force behind her hit had not been enough. The ball was traveling at to slow a pace and would inevitably miss its intended target but that was before the brown haired boy from earlier snagged her attention.

Running at a full sprint, the boy leaped up towards the stray meteor and pulled back his keyblade. With a determined upward slash, the wayward spell flew through the air at incredible speed, landing straight back into the beast's mouth.

The beast staggered a moment, blinking its eyes rapidly in confusion as it attempted to close its open jaw.

"Thanks for the save." The man behind Blair praised and she chanced a look back at him.

His distracted expression from earlier had changed, instead his light green eyes were now regarding her in placid curiosity.

"No problem." Blair responded before she shifted her gaze back to the Malice in front of them.

It had recovered somewhat, shaking its head to try and dispel the dizziness the hit had created as it opened its mouth again, a light priming inside.

Blair's eyes widened, the spell's effect had worn off much too soon.

Snapping her head back to the man, she motioned to the Malice.

"I have an idea; do you know how to cast Blizzard?" Blair questioned.

Realizing her plan, the man returned her gaze with widened eyes.

"I don't but I know someone who can. Kairi!" He called and the redheaded girl, whom was tag-teaming hits on the Malice's spikes with the boy, turned her head.

"Try casting ice magic on it! That might be its weakness!" The man yelled as he dashed forward to rejoin the others, Blair following close behind.

"What about ice magic?" the girl, whom Blair assumed was Kairi, asked as they approached them.

"I'm pretty sure that thing is weak to it." Blair hurriedly explained as Kairi fixed her with a confused look.

"How did you find out?" she questioned, genuine curiosity staining her words.

"That meteor spell that was reflected seemed to do some damage to it but not enough. It recovered to fast so if fire doesn't work, then try ice. The biggest one you can cast." Blair continued and the brown haired boy who had been silent throughout the exchange rested his hand on Kairi's shoulder.

"We'll all cover you." He said shifting his gaze to both the red haired man and Blair.

They nodded, including Kairi, who separated herself from the group in order to look for a safe place to begin casting. Once a suitable distance away Kairi prepared her stance, grounding herself as she held her keyblade forward.

The boy and his green-eyed companion dived forward, zigzagging in a confusing mix of dashes and agitating strikes to serve as distractions for the Malice.

Finding herself unneeded in the distraction, Blair maneuvered herself to stand a good distance between the fight and Kairi.

Just then, another onslaught of the meteor spell unleashed itself, this time scattering in different directions.

Blair sprang upwards towards a stray meteor coming towards them, nearly losing her footing as pain seared through her ankle. Gritting her teeth, Blair attempted to ignore her sore body as she hurled her spear into the flaming rock causing it to shatter into small chunks around her.

Seeing an opening in the dispersed spell Blair turned around to check on Kairi, who was now running towards her, the tip of her keyblade holding a massive blue orb.

Blair readied herself and just at the right moment jumped as high as she could into the air as Kairi leaped forward towards her. Grasping Kairi's free forearm Blair twisted her own body hard as she flung Kairi higher into the air.

Without fail, the chain continued as the tall man boosted Kairi again and the boy whom was attacking the second horn of the Malice jumped off, back flipping in the air as he, much to Blair's disbelief, glided to Kairi.

The two joined hands and with an epic twirl of their keyblades, unleashed a mighty explosion of ice right into the beast's face causing it to roar in anger.

They didn't let up, casting ice magic again and again, exhausting their mana as the beast roared again in anguish before the glowing of its mouth flickered then suddenly disappeared into blackness.

The Malice stilled eerily as Kairi and the boy landed on the ground from their airborne assault. Then, just as a soft breeze blew by, the Malice burst like a balloon, small black and orange glowing embers twisting in the wind.

"It's over." The man said, his shoulders sagging in relief just as he walked over to Blair, Kairi and the boy joining him.

"Can you believe it? I did it! I took out my first one!" Kairi trilled excitedly, her happiness infectious as Blair allowed herself a small smile.

"You were great Kairi!" the boy praised, a large grin on his face before turning his dark blue eyes on Blair.

"And you too uh…er…"

"My name is Blair." Blair replied politely, letting her spear dispel from her hand.

"Nice to meet you, Blair. I'm Sora, this is Kairi and that's Ax-I mean Lea."

"Charmed." Lea said rolling his light green eyes at Sora's slip, making Kairi giggle.

The joke was lost on Blair.

"So anyway, how did that Malice get here?" Sora asked curiously, looking up at the glowing embers that began to fade as the breeze swiftly snuffed them out.

Blair sighed.

"I wish I could tell you. Me and another wielder were in the middle of our exam when our Master just…" Blair shook her head, trying to make sense of it. "It makes no sense but I believe our Master was that Malice."

Kairi put her hand over her mouth in shock, an apology dancing across her features as Sora and Lea shared a look between them.

What it meant or if they knew something, Blair didn't have a chance to ask.

"Hey! You three, outsiders aren't welcome here!" a snobby voice snapped, catching the attention of all four of them.

It was Triche, her brown hair wind blown despite being firmly clasped to the top of her head, her once flattering clothes now wrinkled and ruffled as stray bits of dirt had made their way onto them.

Despite the state she was in, Blair felt it was infuriating that Triche still managed to look beautiful, like a war goddess withholding the fury of a thousand suns.

"Triche, these three just saved our hides." Blair said sticking up for the trio as she shifted to stand in front of them.

"They weren't needed; we could have handled that Malice easily on our own." Triche huffed haughtily, a fire lighting up in her brown eyes.

"Didn't look that way to me." Lea replied snidely and Triche shot him a nasty glare.

"Excuse me?" she growled, stomping her way up to him as Blair moved to block her path, being sure to place herself between them.

"He's right, Triche. With the way you were acting there wasn't any way we'd be able to take on that Malice." Blair said evenly.

"The way _I_ was acting? I was acting like any normal person would, you know, instead of so heartlessly deciding to kill their own Master like you did." Triche scoffed.

"There wasn't any other way. Master or not we couldn't let that Malice destroy our world." Blair reasoned, clenching her fist in an attempt to even out her steadily building anger.

"Yeah, right! I bet you don't even care that he's gone! I mean, what kind of person just decides to do that?" Triche countered, her voice raising in anger.

Blair grit her teeth together in frustration, fighting to be patient as grief began to well inside of her.

The decision to actively cut down a creature who showed proof to be someone she knew and respected didn't make the whole thing hurt any less. She had acted in accordance to what she thought to be right, to protect the people and the town, not because she enjoyed it and in her heart she had felt compelled to act, to survive and to remain unwilling to let her world be taken by darkness.

Her Master had made a terrible mistake leaving behind a confusing mess, but it still didn't excuse his actions or lessen the sting she felt knowing that Triche thought to accuse her of lacking sensitivity.

"You're a fool if you think that I don't care." Blair said though the words were difficult to release past the rising lump in her throat.

"Pfft, I'll never believe you." Triche said, rolling her eyes as she dismissed the thought.

"He was my Master too!" Blair shot back, her agitation flaring up in waves.

"Oh, poor victim. I just watched you and this trio of outsiders destroy him like he was nothing so don't you dare tell me you care!" Triche spat out the words, meeting Blair's eyes challenging.

"That's…not entirely true…." Kairi interrupted, her small fingers curling around her chin as if deeply lost in thought.

Triche turned to the girl and under the heat of her gaze; Kairi seemed to shrink a bit but dared to meet her eyes anyway.

"I'm not sure how much you know about Malice and their creation but Malice only appears when an evil heart falls completely to darkness. Unlike Heartless that can house all kinds of hearts, Malice is different…instead of seeking out a heart, it utilizes the strength of the heart that it's already holding or born with so to speak." Kairi explained and Blair suddenly felt the strength seep out of her legs.

 _Master Inxe…_

Blair began to wish that she could summon her keyblade without calling attention to herself; she could use it as a prop to hold herself up as her jelly legs threatened to give out.

"What?" Triche asked, her voice cracking.

"Malice is really only a creature that serves as a vessel for a fallen person's heart and their power then it uses the strength of that power to harm others. If its left unchecked it could hurt many people and sometimes it does not just make a world fall to darkness but can completely destroy them before moving on to the next." Kairi continued as she eyed Blair who seemed to be teetering on the edge of falling over.

Triche fared no better, though her legs were stronger, she looked about three shades paler than before.

"That's why Malice can pop up anywhere, once someone like that gives in it can put a world in serious danger, peaceful or otherwise." Lea tagged on.

"Right, most of the time already active Malice will travel to worlds affected by a lot of negativity but newly created Malice can appear just about anywhere." Kairi reaffirmed.

"What happens when they're defeated though? You said it wasn't true that my Master was destroyed." Triche urged Kairi, her brown eyes boring into hers with such intensity that Kairi took a step backwards.

"A defeated Malice releases the heart its carrying just like a Heartless, but that still leaves his Nobody." Lea explained as he edged closer to his teammate, his distrust in Triche apparent.

"So your Master isn't gone, not exactly, if he had a strong enough will he's bound to have a Nobody wandering around that looks like him." Sora piped in, crossing his arms before looking downward, lost in his train of thought.

The group went silent after that, all pondering the possibility of a potential evil Master wandering around.

Blair moved over to a nearby lamppost not too far away from the group and leaned against it as she attempted to regather her strength. Breathing a sigh of relief at the support, she rested her back against it, shifting to be more comfortable while being careful to avoid the spots on her body that still stung.

"So if his Nobody is defeated, strong willed or dusk wise, he'll return?" Triche questioned and the three nodded in unison.

"That's usually how it works." Sora said, his cheerful tone brightening the situation as Blair felt the beginnings of hope started to rise within her.

Triche seemed to be at a loss for words at the new information but her gaze quickly hardened as she fixed her sights on the trio.

The burnette looked like she was about to say something but changed her mind as she turned on her heel to send a nasty glare Blair's way.

"That still leaves why he transformed in the first place and I have a feeling you're to blame for it." Triche growled, her voice rising as the words left her mouth.

Blair blinked at her, to shocked to speak from the outrageous accusation.

"I don't have any proof yet…but I just know it's your fault this whole thing happened." Triche continued before turning her attention back to the three newcomers. "And you three need to leave. This is our world and I think you've done enough meddling."

Shock sprang up on all three of the wielders faces at Triche's strange turn of mood and Blair leaped into action, leaving her lean support.

"Couldn't you at least pretend to be grateful they saved us?" Blair spat, her patience spent.

Triche blinked, confusion crossing her features at Blair's tone as if she hadn't anticipated any backlash for her earlier comments.

"They also told us a great deal of information about Malice, I think they've more than earned the right to rest here." Blair said, her green eyes narrowing dangerously at Triche.

"That doesn't make them entitled to it! No one _asked_ them to come save us…I'm going to go let everyone know what happened." Triche huffed, turning to walk forward only a few steps away from them.

However, Blair noticed that Triche paused, though she made no move to turn around.

"You know what? If these _saviors_ of yours are smart they'll stay away from you." Triche snapped before she began to run forward. No doubt to begin defusing the situation in town and potentially inform the Mayor of what had transpired with Master Inxe.

Blair sighed outwardly and closed her eyes. It was out of her hands now.

"I apologize for that whole thing with Triche." Blair said finally turning her attention back to the three wielders who all seemed to look worried.

"But I am also incredibly grateful for your help." Blair continued, bowing her body low in a show of respect as her powder blue hair fell across her shoulder, shielding half her face. "Even if no one else recognizes what you've done for us, I will, so thank you so much for saving our world!"

A small knot tightened in Blair's throat as the words left her mouth, an uneasiness weaving itself in her heart.

She wasn't certain that she could handle three more angry people in her current state so she hoped that by showing enough sincerity that it would repair some of the damage that Triche had caused to the newfound relationship.

"Hey, it's no problem. That's what Keyblade Wielders do. We look out for each other." Sora quipped brightly and Blair looked up, a little surprised by the response.

"But you know…" he continued, his voice veering off in a way that made Blair stiffen once more, an inkling of fear shooting through her veins. "I kinda wish we hadn't saved that other girl."

Sora let his smile slip into a frown as he reached up a finger to scratch the side of his cheek, as if he was embarrassed to voice his thoughts.

"Agreed." Lea replied, a smirk teasing the edge of his lips.

"Guys!" Kairi chided, her expression that of shock at her teammates as she set to scolding both of them.

Blair began to laugh at the scene unfolding in front of her, relief and happiness replacing all the dread and fear in a quick swoop as the tension between them melted away. Finding herself unable to stop Blair closed her eyes, feeling the beginnings of small tears prick her eyes as the other three readily joined in.

Laughter danced off the buildings as joy long forgotten jolted through Blair's heart.

Wiping at her eyes she looked back to the trio whom were beginning to quiet their own giggles.

"Ah…Kairi's right though." Blair said as she sobered from her laughing fit. "Triche isn't all bad; she's just a little…rough around the edges."

"Then what's her issue with you?" Lea asked, seemingly calm from his own laughter though a smile still threatened to crack his face.

"Well…I don't really know to be honest." Blair replied turning her head to look in the direction of where Triche had run off. "Believe it or not we were close friends once but then one day it changed."

Realizing that she had made the atmosphere tense with the promise of a story, Blair shook her head.

"Anyway that was a very long time ago and what's important right now is that you're thanked properly." Blair stated, grateful that the atmosphere of anticipation had ceased as the trio exchanged looks among themselves.

"Here."

Blair walked forward and grasped Lea's hand firmly and she immediately felt warmth radiate from it. Marveling at the calloused feel of his palm, Blair quickly released a small bag, inside held a good amount of munny as well as a few defense and power boosts.

"There should be enough in there for each of you, and feel free to check out the town once it's settled down a little." Blair said as she lifted an arm to point two fingers to the four open spaces between the surrounding buildings.

"This place may look pretty big but it's only made up of about four sections. To the right is the marketplace where you can find pretty much anything from weapons to items. A synthesis moogle also moved in not too long ago so at the very least I'm sure he's open right now." Blair said before pointing her finger to the right of it.

"Then next to it is the Rumble Stadium."

"Rumble Stadium? What's that?" Sora asked, his blue eyes gleaming with a type of sparkle that Blair couldn't help but smile at.

"It's a place for people to battle and test their skills, kind of like a tournament arena though most of the town goes there to place bets on their favorite fighters or play in the arcade; they have a few theme park rides in there as well." Blair explained before shifting her hand next to the Rumble Stadium.

"The housing district is over there, there's not much to do in there but it does have a pretty cool looking fountain and then at the very end-" Blair shifted her fingers again, pointing to the last space between the crowd of buildings. "Is Splendent Dawn's lake and also where I live."

"In the lake?" Sora asked, confusion crossing his features and Blair gave a short laugh before shaking her head.

"No, I live in a house near the lake; it's one of the only ones around there so if you get lost or need help with something feel free to stop by."

"We will for sure!" Kairi said before turning her attention to Sora. "Let's try out the Rumble Stadium."

The excitement was very obvious in her voice as her blue eyes lit up. Blair had to wonder what it was that had caught the young girl's interest in the stadium.

Had it been the fighting or the gambling? Alternatively, it could have been the prospect of playing video games but it could have also been the promise of a roller coaster ride.

"Eh, you guys go on ahead." Lea remarked, disinterest clear in his voice as he folded his arms across his chest.

"Aw, what? You don't want to come with, Lea?" Sora asked, his smile dropping a little, a bit discouraged by his friend's lack of enthusiasm.

"Nah, I kinda want to check out the marketplace. I'll see you guys around." Lea replied as he began walking in the direction of the marketplace.

"Shall we?" Kairi asked, eying Blair expectantly as she held out her hand.

"I'm sorry, but I'm a little sore after that battle. I was struggling quite a bit before you guys showed up so I'm gonna head home and patch myself up." Blair said kindly, giving Kairi an apologetic look.

"Suit yourself." Sora shrugged before flashing a friendly smile at Kairi and the couple set off for their destination.

Blair felt her shoulders relax as she watched them walk away, waiting for them to disappear just past the curve of the buildings before quickly summoning her keyblade and twirling it into spear form.

After everything that had happened today, she felt completely exhausted. Mentally she was spent from dealing with so many tense situations and her arms and ankles still ached from where Triche's whip had latched onto her.

Grimacing, Blair touched her still tender elbow, noticing a purple blemish begin to rise around it. She hated to think of what the side of her face looked like from her fall from earlier.

Practically hurting all over, she attempted to distract herself one more time.

 _Just enough to get home._

Blair reasoned as she started to walk forward, beginning the journey home, using her weapon as a walking stick.


	4. Little Talks

_**A/N: Holy smokes, this chapter is long! I haven't written a chapter this long in...years actually. XD Another big thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story, it really does help keep the inspiration candle lit and the enjoyment that people get from it fuels me to keep writing! I hope you enjoy!**_

The knock at Blair's door surprised her as she nearly dropped the two green potion bottles in her hands.

She had just returned from the marketplace only a few moments ago, attempting to restock her supply of curatives after healing from the day before.

Not having the ability to cast any sort of magic, much less Cure, Blair had to resort to using her own supply which had been running low as of late. Truly, she had been lucky that she had some left in stock; the price tag of a simple potion at the moogle shop was quite hefty if one didn't have the materials to synthesize one.

Placing the potions carefully on the granite counter in her kitchen, Blair hurried to the front door.

Curiosity bloomed inside her at the thought of her potential visitors before turning the door knob then jolted back, startled, as she was greeted with a loud 'surprise!' yelled in unison.

Sora, Kairi and Lea were huddled in the middle of her doorway, standing tightly together, as they grinned at her. The trio were all sporting T-shirts and hats stamped with the Rumble Stadium's logo while their arms carried an array of colorful plush creatures.

"What's all this?" Blair laughed, amusement touching her eyes as she took in their strange attire.

"We wanted to come by and see you!" Kairi explained, shifting an extremely large Moogle plush in her arms.

"We spent all day at the Rumble Stadium! We snagged you a hat!" Sora expressed with glee before lifting up his hand and promptly shoving it down on Blair's head. The hat was just a bit too big for her but Blair couldn't help the smile that reached her face at the gesture.

"And all night." Lea added, before a yawn escaped his mouth and Blair took notice of the dark circles under their eyes.

She could tell that they probably wouldn't admit that they were unable to find a place to stay, the only inn in Splendent Dawn had more than likely closed their doors due to the Malice's appearance.

"You guys do look tired, would you like to spend the night here?" Blair questioned, stepping out of the way to invite them into her house before she turned her head to survey the setting of the sun.

She hoped she didn't seem to eager but she couldn't very well ignore the sleep deprived state they were all in.

"Really?" Kairi asked, relief apparent in her tone as Blair gave a reassuring nod.

"I have a few couches in the living room and a recliner that you all can use. I'll go get some blankets." Blair said before walking further into her house only to notice her guests looked stranded at the front door.

"Feel free to roam around and make yourselves at home, the living room is past the kitchen." Blair called out to them, hoping it would provide enough encouragement as she moved to the opposite side of her house.

Upon reaching the linen closet, Blair opened it and began to shift through the folded blankets she had stored over the years. She attempted to calculate how warm it would be that evening as she tried to neglect some of the heavier ones in favor of the thinner ones. Finding only two, she retrieved the thinnest one out of the bulkier blankets and folded them into her arms.

Reaching upward on her tiptoes, she yanked a pillow down from the top shelf it was perched upon and a whole cascade of them followed, showering her in a variety of pillows as she hurriedly bent to pick them up.

Selecting three of the biggest ones she had, Blair journeyed to her living room where Kairi was attempting to put their hoard of plush creatures into a corner by the recliner while Lea and Sora argued over who would get the longer couch.

Doing a poor job of hiding her amusement, Blair set her load of blankets on the arm of the short couch.

"Are you guy's hungry?" Blair asked and all three of them contemplated for a moment before looking at each other then expressed that they weren't.

"We did eat a lot at the Stadium." Sora admitted, patting his thin stomach in a way that made Blair wonder where he could have possibly stored the aforementioned food.

Taking a closer look at him, she came to realize just how skinny he was, his body still latching stubbornly to the lanky limbs and super powered metabolism of a teenager.

That led Blair to quickly glance over Kairi, who was now locked in conversation with Sora. It had then occurred to Blair that she looked almost like Kairi did about three years ago.

Kairi was attractively thin, her body clinging to teenage youth as the subtleness of the curves of her hips and torso were delicately defined by her tight clothing.

Blair had no doubt that in a few years Kairi would be breaking hearts left and right if not already, though the more she looked at the pair of teens in front of her, the more confident she felt that Kairi had already secured a loyal one.

Then Blair found her eyes wandering to Lea, whom was easy to tell was comfortably fitted within his own body.

He stood tall, supported by long legs while being held perfectly together in a lithe frame. His torso was just wide enough to compliment his well toned arms without appearing bulky before narrowing into a trim waist.

His well formed structure reminded Blair that of a cat, and just when her thoughts stretched to the possibility of him having reflex's like one, Lea's eyes greeted hers and she flitted her gaze away.

"All that greasy food probably doesn't help when you're tired." Lea said, keeping up with the current conversation Blair had missed out on thanks to her analyzing.

Instinctively she nodded, not wanting to appear out of place as she released a yawn herself.

"All this talk of sleeping is making me tired too, if you guys don't mind I think I'll turn in." Blair commented as she moved her arm over her chest locking her other arm over it to give it a good stretch.

"I think we'll do the same." Lea agreed just as he began to shed his Rumble Stadium merchandise he had been wearing over his clothes.

She couldn't explain why her eyes narrowed in on Lea at that particular moment but it quickly became clear when Lea's Rumble Stadium shirt was pulled from his back. The shirt underneath it rose a good length, allowing her to catch a glimpse of the taut muscles of his abdomen causing her breath to hitch.

Her eyes raked along the soft indentions of his stomach in curiosity, admiring his unmarred form before becoming intensely aware that she was staring and shifted her gaze back to the others who had begun to follow Lea's example.

Swinging up her other arm over her chest, Blair ignored the pleasant thumping of her heart as she twisted her back tighter for a stronger stretch. A pair of fluttering wings rose to tickle the sides of Blair's stomach stubbornly and in a silent breath, she promptly crushed the feeling in her mind.

She refused to be caught up like that again.

"Have a good night!" Blair said, chasing off her rebellious thoughts, then once she knew the three of them were settled she flipped the living room light switch off.

"Night!" Sora called after her as she began to walk out of the living room.

Almost out of the kitchen, a thought occurred to her, making her pause briefly before turning around.

"Oh, and the kitchen is right next door so feel free to have whatever you like if you end up getting hungry or thirsty later." Blair said, her voice faltering awkwardly. "Or if you need me, my room is down the hall."

She was greeted with a variety of 'thank yous' and more 'good nights' at which she returned before grimacing at her own behavior when she was turned away from them.

Once safely inside her bedroom, Blair began to undress.

Setting the hat she had been gifted onto her dresser she began to shuck off her armor before placing it neatly on the nightstand by her bed. Gripping the edges of her pants, she started to wrangle herself out of her clothing in favor of slipping into her nightclothes.

Reaching for the outfit on her bed, Blair secured a light green top that stopped halfway down her ribs and then briefly fought the frilled straps that held it together before pulling on a pair of pants that matched it.

Sighing at the comforting softness of her clothes, she reached up to untie a pastel green ribbon from her hair, placing it on her nightstand next to her armor.

Then, letting gravity do the work, plopped down backwards onto her bed to let her eyes wander to the darkened ceiling of her bedroom.

 _When was the last time I had friends over?_

Her heart clenched uncomfortably at the protruding thought as she turned over onto her side, attempting to clear her mind of the replaying scene of her clumsy exit just a few moments prior.

 _How long has it been since I've had a friend?_

…

Blair awoke with a jolt, sweat covering her forehead as she tried to even the rapid pace of her breathing.

She wasn't entirely sure what had woken her up, much less when she had fallen asleep, but at present all she knew was that it was _hot._

Unbearably so.

Taking in the scene of her twisted bedsheets wrapped messily into the corner of her bed, she surmised she must have kicked them off sometime in the night.

Blair pulled her gaze around the room and noticed that her window was still indeed open, just as she had left it the day prior.

Blair rolled over, feeling uncomfortably slick with sweat as she maneuvered to place her bare feet on the wooden planks of the floor before stumbling to her bedroom door.

A stab of irritation gripped her insides at the inconvenience of the early morning heat and its relentlessness as she tried to remember if she had anything cold left in the freezer.

Opening her door with silent ease, Blair made her way to the kitchen, making sure to keep quiet as soft snores reached her ears.

She had nearly forgotten in her haze of rising agitation that Sora and the others had taken up residence for a much-needed rest.

The fridge, the goal of Blair's dark morning patrol, was illuminated by a soft light making it easy to find as she quietly began to look through the freezer.

Not entirely sure what she was looking for, Blair skimmed past ice packs, frozen vegetables and a surplus of vacuum sealed fish before eyeing a half empty box of double popsicles.

Tantalized at the prospect of finding relief from the insufferable heat, Blair retrieved the cold treat before gripping the edge of the packaging, intent on its removal.

"Mind if I join you?" a smooth voice aired and Blair nearly jumped out of her skin at the unexpected words.

Turning around quickly, she found Lea standing in the doorway of her kitchen, looking much more rested than earlier though a hint of grogginess still clung to him.

Blair's eyes inadvertently darted to his chest, the yellow patterned scarf that had hung around his neck during their first meeting, was missing as was his orange shirt. The items had probably been removed due to the heat that had encapsulated Blair's home throughout the night, and in their place was a fitting tank top that clung to every dip and curve of Lea's frame.

Shifting, Lea placed both of his hands on her doorway before leaning forward into the soft glow of the kitchen light, just enough so that Blair could see that his body was glistening with a thin sheen of sweat.

Blair felt her mouth suddenly dry, as she tried not to swallow the tumbleweeds in the desert of her mouth.

Coughing softly, she attempted to clear her throat in the hopes that she hadn't appeared rude or conspicuous in ogling him.

"I take it you couldn't sleep cause of the heat either, huh?" Blair asked, tearing open her popsicle discreetly before breaking it into two and handing half of it to Lea.

A touch of relief crossed his features as he accepted the popsicle from her grasp.

"Yeah, and I have no idea how those two can sleep through it." He said quietly, gesturing with his newly acquired prize to the two snoring blanket coated lumps on the couches.

Blair found it amusing that Lea must have lost his argument with Sora over the long couch as she took in the heavier blanket from earlier crumpled up on the recliner.

"I don't either." Blair mused as Lea stuck the popsicle into his mouth before retracting, looking slightly confused.

"What is this?"

"It's cherry flavored." Blair replied softly as she walked forward, sliding past Lea's frame before half turning to face him. Gesturing with her hand, she pointed to the front door, silently asking if he wanted to join her and Lea nodded, his eyes dancing with mild curiosity.

Once outside, Blair gave a relieved sigh as the cold air of the morning rushed past her, cooling the sweat from her skin as Lea leaned comfortably against the railing of her front porch.

"It's nice out here." Lea commented as Blair popped her own popsicle in her mouth.

She hummed in agreement, suddenly finding herself uncomfortable.

Conversation wasn't exactly her strong point, especially so early in the morning, normally she'd be out at the lake by this time enjoying the sound of a reeling pole and the telltale splashes of unlucky fish.

It hadn't occurred to her, till that moment, that Lea might have thought her intentions of asking him outside were so they could talk freely.

"So I've been meaning to ask you, since your Master's disappeared what are you planning to do now?" Lea asked and Blair looked at him, catching the intensiveness of his light green eyes before he shifted his attention toward the lake.

"You were awfully quiet when Kairi explained what happened after defeating that Malice. In fact, neither you or that Triche girl made any real resolutions with the information. So I'm curious…"

His eyes slide back to Blair, pinning her in place under the strength of his gaze.

"Did you have a plan to find or restore your Master?"

Blair felt her body tense as she met Lea's eyes.

This certainly wasn't what she had expected him to ask and she was even more nervous at the fact that he was testing his assumptions of her.

"No…I didn't have any plans to restore him." Blair answered, though her voice seemed faint even to her own ears.

Truthfully she hadn't given much thought to her Master after the initial battle, tossing her initial guilt into some secluded corner of herself, and instead spent her hours worrying over whether or not the path to her world would be resealed again.

Even if she had sought for the possibility of restoring her Master, her wants and needs would be easily pushed aside in favor of the people if they wished to close the road to themselves off.

So instead of looking for a resolution, and as unsavory as it was, Blair had mourned that Triche and herself would be made to carry out the keyblade's blessing of power with only second hand knowledge, inevitably killing her dream to protect the other worlds.

"Funny, after that encounter with Triche I figured you'd be dead set on finding his Nobody and bringing him back. You know, to set her straight and all." Lea said, his tone becoming playful as he attempted to ease them out of the high-strung setting.

"Honestly, I hadn't given it that much thought… besides I doubt the town would allow me to leave after what's happened." Blair replied as she tore her gaze away from Lea to stare out at the lake, her heart thumping with uneasiness as she surveyed a faint light reflecting off the water.

"What do you mean? You're a Keyblade Wielder aren't you? Gotta protect the order and all that." Lea said, waving his popsicle in the air in exaggeration.

Blair laughed bitterly.

"You'd think, right?"

Lea eyed Blair again, confusion knitting his eyebrows together as he studied her.

"Up till now, our world has been secluded from any sort of influence from outside. This world's keyhole has been sealed and any roads that the Heartless have used in the past have been as well." Blair summoned her keyblade then, using her popsicle stick as a sacrifice for the blades appearance as the stick splintered into pieces.

"Even the roads of light that can be opened by the keyblade are normally securely locked." Blair gave the lightweight blade a halfhearted twirl, the green charm at the bottom jumping gently, before she let go of it, letting it evaporate from existence.

She sighed heavily.

"Our world was only opened for the Mark of Mastery, once we had proven ourselves; this world would have been resealed again…." Blair felt her throat close in on her voice and she swallowed thickly as sadness enveloped her.

The thought of not being able to realize her only dream felt like torment.

"And I take it you don't like that?" Lea ventured, if he had noticed Blair's change in tone he didn't choose to acknowledge it.

"Of course not. You said it yourself a Keyblade Wielder is supposed to protect the order of all worlds, not just one. It's our duty to defend against the darkness but instead this world insists that we remain here and only care for ourselves. It isn't right." Blair said, her tone a lot harder than before.

"Got a point there…but you know not every world is riddled with darkness like you think. In fact, it's not always dangerous either, sure new threats pop up from time to time but breaks happen often enough too." Lea said, attempting to lighten the mood once more.

"But hero obsessed or otherwise I admire that you think that way. Not everyone can be so passionate about helping others." He continued, startling her, obviously taken back by his comment before she suddenly began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Lea asked, turning to frown at her as Blair put a hand to her mouth to cover up her fountain of giggles.

"Oh, nothing, it's just…I've never had someone tell me that I'm obsessed with being a hero before…and hearing it just kinda makes me realize I must sound ridiculous." She laughed, waving it off good-naturedly.

"Well, you do seem to give off that vibe. It seems like you don't want your world to be sealed off so you can be free to travel and become a hero to other worlds, right?" Lea said, his mouth curving into a smirk.

"Yeah…and I suppose that can be viewed as a flaw or maybe even a little selfish but it's my dream. I don't want to remain in only one place where nothing changes. Really, I only want to help those that can't help themselves." Blair said as she leaned up against the porch railing, folding her arms across her chest to steady herself.

"Spoken like a true Master." Lea said and Blair felt her face warm with pride at the praise before she turned her head to look at him.

"So, what about your world? Does it have crazy rules like mine?" Blair asked and Lea's eyes widened at the question.

He hesitated for a moment, as if uncomfortable at answering the query before shaking his head.

"Now that I think about it, no, not really. I mean our world has gone through its own sealing process after it had been lost to darkness but once it was revived; our world kind of became a hub for those that lost their worlds. Well sort of…it's more like small headquarters for us wielders now but I imagine it's a lot more homier than Traverse Town." Lea explained, trying to work his way around Blair's question.

"Traverse Town?" Blair pried, her heart already beginning to pound at the new information.

"It's a world for those that no longer have one. Once a world has been lost to darkness, if the citizen's don't turn into Heartless the world appears and they go there. It's like a safe haven for them." Lea continued, "But Radiant Garden, my world, is where I learned how to actually use a keyblade, along with Kairi. It's where we trained together."

"Kairi? And what about, Sora?" Blair asked, her green eyes glued to Lea in curiosity, practically hanging off his every word.

"Heh, that's a bit of a long story with Sora, it's a tale that's better told by him." Lea laughed before sticking his popsicle stick in his mouth to chew on it thoughtfully.

"Then, what was training for you like? I don't imagine it was much different than mine." Blair pressed, her mind whirling with excitement at hearing about Lea's world and this Traverse Town.

They both sounded so much more open and accepting than Splendent Dawn, she couldn't help but imagine the good her own world could do if they expanded themselves.

"You'd be surprised; I don't think our training was similar to any Keyblade Wielders." Lea said before removing the stick from his mouth.

"At the time, Kairi and I were just beginners with our keyblades, but the fate of the worlds didn't give us much time to remain that way. A wizard in my world ended up putting us in a type of chamber, one that didn't abide by the rules of time, when we entered, we trained every day for a year. It was extremely grueling but once we were able to leave the chamber, we were told it had only been a day on the outside. Next thing we knew we had graduated to being Masters." Lea shook his head as if he was still unable to believe it himself.

Blair's eyes widened at the story, her memory flashing to when Sora and Lea had launched themselves at the Malice and how coordinated their attacks were.

It was hard to believe that someone with the kind of capability that Lea showed had only endured training for a year.

"That's…crazy. Triche and I have been training since we were small and we still never managed to become Masters, but you and Kairi were able to do it in one year if not just a day." Blair marveled, feeling the uncomfortable itch of jealousy rise within her chest before swatting it away.

"Well, it's a lot more complicated than that. I still consider myself to be a new wielder despite my title." Lea assured her before fixing Blair with a curious look. "So what's the story with you and Triche? You've known each other for so long, I'm kinda surprised you didn't stay friends."

Blair stiffened at the question.

"I don't really know what happened between us." Blair stated, making Lea's eyes narrow.

Catching the change in his expression, Blair sighed. She knew her answer wouldn't sound convincing and she couldn't blame him for being suspicious but unfortunately, it was the truth.

"We were friends and for the longest time it was myself, Triche and her brother Killian but one day they just stopped talking to me. There wasn't really any warning prior to it, it was almost like I had become invisible but after a while of one-sided conversations they started to distance themselves even further from me. Before long we just stopped interacting altogether." Blair explained, feeling her heart clench uncomfortably in her chest as unwanted memories began to flood inside her mind.

Visions of the blank stares the siblings would give her whenever she tried to engage with them mingled with the sneers whenever her back was turned. It was hard for her to believe that their friendship had ended only four years ago and that she had treated them as ghosts ever since.

"I can understand, maybe from an outside perspective at least. Kairi and I had growing pains in our friendship for a while too." Lea said gently and offered Blair a soft smile when she looked up at him.

"It's not really similar to your experience but a long time ago I did some pretty bad stuff to Kairi when I hung out with the wrong crowd. We weren't friends at the time but when I eventually found my way to the light and was sent to be trained, Kairi was there and set to be my partner. I ended up apologizing over and over, there wasn't a day that went by that I didn't tell her I was sorry." Lea explained before looking at his hands, his slender fingers curling before balling into fists.

"Funny thing is, she forgave me each time I apologized but despite her forgiveness it never really seemed like enough." He said, before releasing a laugh devoid of joy and shaking his head. "Some days it still doesn't feel like enough."

"But your friends now though, right?" Blair questioned as she recalled that Lea and Kairi's conversations never really seemed forced. In fact, all three of them appeared to be rather close and on good terms, she never would have guessed that there would have been a struggle between them.

"Well, yeah, still doesn't erase what I did though. If I could take it all back I would." Lea replied and Blair felt the air begin to settle around them.

It wasn't entirely uncomfortable, but it was enough to make Blair want to excuse herself as she had no real way of comforting Lea. She simply didn't know enough to do so and she felt it would be wrong to pry into something so personal.

"Ahh…I think I'm going to get another popsicle, do you want one?" Blair asked and Lea fixed her with a half smile.

"Sure, I could go for another." He said and Blair turned her back to him.

Stretching out her arm, she grasped the door handle before jolting back sharply as something scurried across her foot.

Alarm sounded in her throat as she stumbled backward, disturbed by a blur of grey fur that hurried across her porch.

Half certain she was about to fall from her poor footing, Blair scrambled to right herself before thumping into a sturdy chest, making her twist at an uncomfortable angle.

Strong arms flew up to steady Blair, gently gripping her around the waist while a hand fastened itself along her bare shoulder.

"Whoa, easy there, what's wrong?" Lea asked; worry lacing his tone as Blair twisted herself further to face him, a fierce redness staining her cheeks.

Tears pricked at the edges of her bright green eyes as she gave Lea a frightened look.

"There was a mouse! _A mouse!_ It ran over my foot!" Blair gasped, a shiver of disgust escaping her body.

She had recalled planting so many traps along the outside of her house to prevent any curious noses from poking inside her home but one still managed to roam around freely. Attempting to blink away the involuntary tears gathering at the edge of her eyes, Blair shivered again as she recalled the jarring feeling of the mouse running across her foot.

A soft snicker caught her ear as she refocused her attention to Lea whom was still holding onto her as she adjusted herself to stand up correctly.

Despite his earlier concern for her, he looked rather amused by the whole situation, causing Blair to puff up defensively.

"So you can handle a Malice like it's no problem, but not a mouse?" Lea questioned, a friendly grin spreading across his face as Blair scrunched hers up to pout, trying to find a valid excuse.

"It was a big mouse!" Blair exclaimed, disliking the fact that she had shown such an embarrassing side of herself right after talking about how much she wanted to help entire worlds.

She knew it was a ridiculous to be afraid of such small and relatively harmless creatures but she couldn't help it even if she tried.

"Is that so?" Lea asked before he could no longer hold back his laughter, causing Blair's blush to deepen in humiliation, attempting to find some way to redeem herself.

"Hey, Bait!"

An all too familiar voice called out, disrupting the moment as Blair whipped her head to the side, the lighthearted moment dissipating like smoke in the wind.

As Lea's laughter died in his throat, Blair scanned the expanse of green field that surrounded her house before looking toward the beaten dirt path that lead to it.

Standing not too far away was Killian, his hands tucked rigidly into his pants pockets all the while looking mildly disgruntled.

Killian eyed her strangely, forcing Blair to return her attention to Lea, only to realize that he was looking at Killian though his arms were still wrapped around her.

In a slow movement, she pulled away from him, caught off guard by their proximity as Lea's arms easily dropped from her.

Reverting her gaze back to Killian, Blair tilted her head upwards, anxiousness swarming within her at his unwelcome arrival to her home, especially before the sun had even risen.

"Did you need something?" Blair asked coldly, folding her arms across her chest as she suddenly became conscious that she was standing in her pajamas.

Killian arched a thick eyebrow at her, his gaze unintentionally following her arms movement.

"I came to deliver a message from the Mayor." He replied, redirecting his gaze to meet Blair's face.

"So early in the morning?" Lea questioned, suspicion apparent in his tone as Killian quickly shot him an annoyed glare.

"I tried down by the lake since Bait is usually fishing at this hour, though apparently that isn't the case this morning. " Killian said, before dragging his eyes back to Blair, a smug smile airing on the edge of cruelty curling along his lips.

"To be honest, I'm a bit surprised you even have visitors. Makes sense that you'd be so desperate for friends you'd have to look outside of your own world." Killian sneered and the all too knowing tone of it made Blair stiffen in response.

"Did you come here to give me the message or just hear yourself talk?" Blair asked evenly, steeling herself against Killian's notions as his brown eyes narrowed in annoyance, obviously displeased that his brutish remarks had been deflected.

"You've been summoned to the town square to talk about the closing of the road with the Mayor. The meeting starts at ten." Killian stated simply before turning on his heel and began to walk away, his shoulders hunched in agitation.

"Seems like Triche isn't the only one actively having it out for you." Lea commented, his gaze glued to Killian's back.

"He's always been that way." Blair sighed, the line of her mouth dipping into a frown.

"So why does he call you, Bait?" Lea asked curiously, sliding his eyes to take in the blue haired woman at his side.

"Him and Triche both do, though I'm not really sure why. I assumed it had to do with the fact that I'm fishing all the time." Blair explained.

While she never really knew the origin of her nickname, that was the only reason she could think of when being referred to it.

Lea hummed in understanding but made no further comment as Blair found her attention drawn back to the lake in front of her house.

"So, I guess we'll all be saying goodbye soon." Blair said softly, not bothering to look away from the lake.

It was absurd to mourn the loss of a new friendship, after all Blair hadn't known her trio of visitors for very long but she couldn't deny the strings of sadness knotting themselves in her stomach.

Once they left and the road to her world was resealed, she knew she'd never see any of them again, and the thought of returning to her usual routine without even the possibility of friendship left her feeling empty.

"Yeah, I'll have to let Kairi and Sora know that it'd be in our best interests to leave before the world is closed, although…" Lea's words wandered off and Blair turned her attention to him only to find him looking at her slyly.

"You could always see if they'll keep it open." He finished and with such confidence that Blair thought that it was amusing he would suggest something so obvious.

Blair shook her head good-naturedly.

"I'm afraid that even asking wouldn't sway the vote, after all the road's opening and closing has to be determined by the people of the town." Blair explained and she felt the stone in her stomach drop painfully when she saw Lea's disappointed expression.

"Then, its goodbye?" Lea questioned.

"I'm afraid so."


	5. Dark Rescue

_**A/N: YAY! I was finally able to wrangle my inspiration into making the fifth installment. I'm really happy with how this chapter turned out and how the story is currently progressing, I can only hope that you guys will enjoy it too! Please feel free to review and let me know what you think! Happy reading!**_

Blair secured her new Rumble Stadium cap on the top of her head, adjusting the bill for a moment as she pulled her newly braided hair to flow down the length of her back.

Earlier, Lea had relayed the message to Sora and Kairi about Splendent Dawn's sealing and while the two had expressed their disappointment they remained rather cheerful at the idea of visiting again. Blair didn't question Lea's reasoning for neglecting to mention that her world would more than likely remain sealed forever, but assumed it must have been better that way.

Blair eyed herself in the vanity mirror that was atop her dresser before fixating on the task of ensuring that the pastel green ribbon, which was securely fastened at the end of her braid, would remain there.

Giving it a reassuring tug, Blair exited her bedroom to hunt for her shoes when she spied a large pile of neatly folded blankets resting nearby.

She approached the conspicuous tower of fabric, aiming to put the mass of blankets back where it belonged lest she forget but paused, surprised to see an elongated piece of paper laying on top of it.

Journeying further, Blair reached out curiously for the paper, securing it within her fingers she immediately realized it was a note, written out in neat script.

 _~We can't wait till we see each other again!~_

Turning over the intriguing object, Blair came to realize that the 'paper' was in fact a small series of black and white photographs.

Sora, Kairi and Lea were all featured, packed tightly together in a small booth while making a wide range of expressions that had Blair beaming by the end of the photos.

Happy to receive the memento, Blair returned her gaze to the pile of blankets and was once more surprised as she caught sight of a curiously simple keychain resting on top of it.

Grasping the item, she noticed that the keychain held four, star charms of varying colors, decorating a single chain that attached snuggly to the keyring.

First a red star, then a pink one, followed by a black one while a blue one hung at the end. She recognized the charms as one of the prizes one could pick out from the Rumble Stadium reward counters after acquiring enough tickets.

Touched by the thoughtful gift, Blair tried to reign in her disbelief as a stray tear rolled down her cheek.

Confused by the overwhelming need to cry, she wiped at her cheek gently before quickly composing herself, suddenly grateful that her newfound friends hadn't given the gift in person. She would have felt ridiculous for crying in front of them.

Releasing a shaky breath, Blair turned to attach the keychain to the belt loop of her pants all the while being sure it was a safe distance away from the thick feathers that adorned her belt to prevent it from snagging. Satisfied with its placement, she retrieved a magnet from her fridge before placing the strip of photos onto it, before hauling the blankets to the linen closet.

Once the living room was back in its tidy order, Blair hurried to the front door, finding and slipping on her shoes before quickly dashing outside.

Normally the dirt road that led to the town square took a good amount of time to travel upon, but today Blair felt like she had practically teleported to her destination.

For the entire run, her mind had been wrapped up tight in thoughts of what would possibly be a convincing argument to attempt a revote of the masses, to the point she hadn't realized how fast her trip had gone.

With the dawn fully realized, orange light glittered off the windows of tall buildings that surrounded the square, giving it a tranquil appearance as surrounding Autumn Cherry trees surrendered their white petals to the cobblestone streets.

Blair sneezed absently as a flurry of petals passed her on a gust of wind, making her wrinkle her nose as she approached the center of the square where Triche and the Mayor were waiting.

The Mayor was a round fellow, his outfit consisting of hues of orange and white with glittering pink trims that made him nearly as interesting to look at as the dawn itself. His brown hair was neatly slicked back and he sported a thick curled mustache that distracted away from the soft shades of pink that decorated the outer ends of his eyes in a peculiar pattern.

"Ah! Blair, it's good that you're here, now we can get started!" The Mayor exclaimed upon her arrival, cheerfully twirling one end of his mustache.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Mayor." Blair apologized as her eyebrow twitched in agitation at Triche's snicker.

Blair glanced in Triche's direction taking in the fact that she had dressed more modestly if not outlandishly today than the day of their test. Modeling a dress that showed off all the colors of the rainbow, Triche toned down the colors with a black jean jacket and leggings.

Dangly red earrings shone in the sun from her ears as Triche flipped her hair in a nonchalant manner making Blair notice that instead of her signature pigtails, she sported an odd ponytail. Her brown hair was pulled up to the top of her head and secured with a red hair tie to form an obnoxiously tall ponytail that let the hair flow downward in a cascade of soft waves.

Flitting her gaze away from Triche, Blair paused as she caught sight of a wandering figure in the background and recognized it to be Killian, whom was trying his best to look inconspicuous. Though he fooled no one, it was obvious that he was eager to get front row seats to the impending argument.

"Well, that's alright. Thankfully, with you and Triche here we'll be able to discuss the issue of the road. The people have become quite upset with what took place with Master Inxe's…erm…transformation." The Mayor began, fumbling for the appropriate words. "So, no vote has been cast yet, although we plan to hold a ballot in the next few days, but before I set to organize it I wanted your opinions."

"Shoot." Blair said, curious as to why the Mayor was holding off on such an important decision.

"Well, you see, over the past three years we've kept the road to us closed. Heartless and Nobody activity had severely increased during that time but always tapered off thanks to you Keyblade Wielders finding and closing the roads they might have used. However, the moment the main road was opened, no Heartless or Nobodies came through like they usually did-"

"Yes, but the Malice still appeared. I did some digging and I've come to understand that outside influence was the cause." Triche interrupted as she twirled a stray piece of curled hair.

"You think so?" The Mayor questioned, his blue eyes widening at the suggestion.

"Of course, Master Inxe always received reports regarding the outside worlds around us. It's likely that accepting those reports influenced him. So, if you ask me, I think we should cut off all further communication with the other worlds and keep the main path to our world _permanently_ closed in order to avoid events like this happening again." Triche continued and Blair felt the air around her thicken.

Blair had expected this topic to come up in conversation, but to hear Triche's faulty reasoning stated as fact with no real proof of the reports influence was beyond her.

"I disagree; you have no real proof suggesting the reports influence do you? Cutting ourselves off from everything isn't going to help anyone, much less ourselves." Blair said, shock evident in her tone.

"Well, there isn't exactly a reason to keep it open anyway now is there? The only proof I need is that once the road was opened, for like, the first time in three years, Master Inxe transformed into a _Malice._ The cause had to have been something not within our own world; otherwise he would have turned into that thing sooner, soI don't see a reason to keep exposing everyone to potential danger like that." Triche explained coolly.

"I understand what you're saying but if that's the case then I agree, we should stop accepting reports from other worlds, but instead of closing ourselves off we need to investigate the true cause for ourselves, just to be sure this doesn't happen again." Blair argued and Triche fixed her with a dark glare.

"Oh, that's just peachy, but while we gallivant around other worlds, who will be left to protect our world?" Triche sneered, propping her hand up on her hip.

"We could take turns investigating the senders of the reports and if we can't find anything, we patrol nearby world borders for trouble. It would also be in our best interests to make new allies free from darkness's influence, then it wouldn't be a necessity to leave Splendent Dawn. We could also trade information until were able to take on some apprentices of our own." Blair reasoned and Triche shook her head sharply.

"While that's good in theory, it wouldn't ever work. We'd just be back in the same situation after a while. I know that the outside influence of those reports is what poisoned Master Inxe, and he was a _Master,_ how long do you think you or I will last? Anyway, I don't think it's worth it to remain vulnerable to the darkness's advancements. It would be safest for everyone here if we closed it." Triche countered.

"So, we forget the reports and cut our ties to the senders…but the fact still remains that the main road isn't a hub for darkness; it's a beam of pure light so Heartless and Nobodies can't even enter through it. I can understand the other paths remaining closed for protection but really we have nothing to lose by keeping it open." Blair insisted stubbornly.

"But we also have nothing to gain from keeping it open." Triche said, before rolling her eyes. "I bet the real reason you want the main road to stay open is so you can invite those meddling wielders back again. We all know you're a lonely hermit, but I don't think keeping it open for three people that don't even belong in this world is a good enough excuse."

Blair felt anger flare within in her heart at Triche's tone, the painful jab at her isolation and forming an accusation based upon it hurt more than she would have expected.

As much as she loved the minimal time she got to spend with her newfound friends, it was out of line for Triche to assume that that was the only reason she wanted to keep the world open.

"Refrain from putting words in my mouth. That's not the reason." Blair stated coldly.

"Why do you want to keep the road open?" The Mayor asked calmly, finally able to get a word in between the two arguing women, which he now promptly stepped in-between.

Blair straightened herself; she had prepared a response for this exact question.

"Other than the previous mentioned reasons, I'd like to keep it open so I can uphold my sworn duty as a Keyblade Wielder. It's my job to travel to other worlds and defend them from darkness when it becomes necessary." Blair explained and the Mayor tilted his head to the side as if confused.

"You do realize that the Mark of Mastery is null because your Master is gone, correct? While I admire your dedication to being a wielder there really isn't any point in continuing the test." The Mayor responded.

"But this isn't for the test. I want to be able to help other worlds whether I'm a Master or not." Blair said and the Mayor's eyes widened once more, though, just when the light of understanding began to flicker in his eyes, Triche spoke.

"You should know by now that's not the way it's done around here. The other worlds aren't our problem, we are stationed _here_ and your aspirations of wanting to be a half-baked hero could endanger us all."

Blair began to feel her blood grow hot at Triche's words but held her tongue and attempted to quell the flames of her temper, refusing to retaliate.

The brief thought of exposing Triche's terrible mistake of nearly destroying their world when the Malice arrived was tempting to reveal at that moment. After all, Triche had put their world in more danger by refusing to protect its citizens out of fear and incapacitated a fellow wielder in the process.

"Well, it does seem clear what should happen now. I'm sorry Blair, your opinion is appreciated but I'm sure the ballots will agree with Triche on this." The Mayor said finally, and Blair felt her heart sink as sadness seemed to envelope her.

She had expected as much, and she had anticipated losing the argument long before but it still didn't make watching the imaginary nail slam into the coffin of her dreams any easier.

This had been her last shot at fighting for her dream, but she now had to face the reality that it would not come to fruition.

"Right! After your fumble with that Malice you wouldn't be able to handle taking out darkness in other worlds anyway." Triche said and Blair stiffened at the words.

"Blair's fumble?" The Mayor turned his gaze to examine the brunette on the opposite side of him, his eyebrow quirked in question.

"Yes, I told you all about it the other day, don't you remember? Blair just stood there while I did all the work." Triche explained and Blair's face flushed hot, the pins and needles of shame and outrage singing in her blood.

She should have known Triche would have painted the scenario differently than what had actually happened that day. She cursed silently; berating herself for her stupidity at not following Triche to be sure she spoke the honest truth to the Mayor.

"Mm… Triche, I think you might be getting your stories confused. An eyewitness reported that Blair as well as three other wielders were responsible for taking care of the Malice." The Mayor began before being interrupted by Triche who curled herself forward, leaning toward the Mayor's face.

"What eyewitness?" Triche asked, her eyes alight with anger.

"I do believe he was one of our students, the boy submitted several pictures of the fight hoping to get permission to put them in the local newspaper. He's quite talented." The Mayor continued and Blair felt a smirk immediately grace her lips, her anger subsiding significantly as she took in the completely shocked expression on Triche's face.

It was about time Triche was caught in one of her lies.

Recoiling slightly, Triche feigned innocence as she gripped her head dramatically, her bangs falling into her eyes before shaking her head side to side.

"Oh, my apologies Mayor, I must have gotten my stories mixed up. I was training so hard for the test I could hardly sleep and then with this recent issue it's just been a tiring couple of days for me." Triche whined and Blair rolled her eyes as a frown replaced her earlier smirk.

"I don't blame you, I'm sure we can agree that these past few days have been tiring for us all." The Mayor said as he fixed both the women a look of understanding. "Now then Triche, if you please…"

"Of course!" Triche chirped, summoning her keyblade as a yellow light began to illuminate from the tip of it. "I'll go ahead and close the road now."

"Mayor, won't you please reconsider? At least wait till the people vote before deciding anything." Blair reasoned, attempting to sway the decision at least one more time.

Just as the last word left Blair's lips Triche moved forward, slinking past the Mayor like a snake so she was standing toe to toe with Blair. Her red brown eyes were alight with something akin to superiority before she smirked cruelly at her.

"You know, I'm getting so tired of hearing all these excuses of yours, the important votes have been decided already." Triche scoffed before leaning even closer to her as Blair stilled herself, refusing to step back and be intimidated by Triche's show of self-righteousness.

"But…" Triche continued, placing a perfectly manicured nail to the middle of Blair's neck armor. "You did prove to me just how badly you want to see other worlds so…I'll let you! On one condition."

Blair steeled her gaze, unsure of what kind of game Triche was trying to play when a sweet expression graced Triche's features.

"Never show your face here again."

Triche's finger was quickly replaced with the palm of her hand as a blast of wind shot against Blair.

At such close proximity, Blair didn't have any time to counter as she fell backwards, air escaping rapidly from her lungs as she spread her arms out behind her, hoping to catch herself before she hit the ground.

That's when the familiar purple and pink painted sky of her world dipped from her view.

Doing a full somersault in the air, she scrambled desperately for anything solid as hues of blue and green filled up her vision.

Confused by her strange surroundings, Blair suddenly felt weightless as she circled through the air; her Rumble Stadium hat separating itself from her head as it shockingly began to float away from her.

Attempting to right herself in the odd environment, Blair gasped, only to find no readily available air.

Panic seized in her chest as she looked around frantically only seeing disturbing twisted colors swirl around her when she caught sight of an open rift closing rapidly behind her.

Feeling dizzy from lack of oxygen, Blair beat against the armor on her neck and shoulders with her fists in hopes of it activating her full set of armor that would provide her much needed air.

Impatient with its refusal to transform, she summoned her keyblade, willing it to change into a glider but to no avail.

Fear radiated off her in waves at the lack of response of her devices as a flash of color caught her attention.

Swiveling her head quickly, she spotted a fleet of oncoming ships; inside each of them were the dancing yellow eyes of Heartless.

Finally righting herself in the air, Blair witnessed a brightly colored bullet whiz past her, twisting her body quickly she held up her keyblade in defense as a storm of bullets rained towards her mercilessly.

She knew retaliating at this point would be futile, especially with the growing dizziness and darkness creeping into the edges of her vision but she had no other choice.

Then, Blair felt her arms jerk backwards roughly, her keyblade dissolving in the air, though she made no move to fight back against the strange force.

At this point, she felt to oxygen deprived to resist against anything, much less think properly to plan a reasonable counter attack.

Unwilling to move, Blair let herself be pulled further backwards as she let her emerald eyes drift shut.

In the next moment, gravity seemed to work again as Blair felt her figure mold itself against something solid, much akin to a floor, as her body took a moment to process that oxygen was now available.

Gulping air greedily into her lungs, Blair continued to stay planted on the floor, trying to figure out if this was just some kind of hallucination, only to open her eyes.

Her vision blurred, droplets of tears escaping her eyes as she tried to jumpstart her brain into realizing what she was seeing.

The floor she thought she was stationed on was, in fact, not a floor at all, but rather a constantly moving portal.

Black and green swirled together in a set pattern as odd, white symbols seemed to move ever forward making Blair feel a strange sense of vertigo.

Still breathing heavily and trying to get a grip on her bearings, Blair turned to the side, startled to see a familiar face.

"Lea?"

The redhead looked at her, his green eyes intense as they bore into her's making her flounder, confused as to why she could be seeing him.

Her eyes scanned his face quickly, looking for any clues only to see sweat beading at his forehead and Blair's eyes flitted downward to perceive that he was breathing heavily as well.

Blair then came to realize that her hearing had been temporarily distorted, with her thoughts so muggy and her body trying to register its new source of oxygen, she hadn't even heard Lea breathing hard next to her.

"You really called it close there. If I had shown up…just a moment later…" Lea panted, though to Blair the sound was odd, as if he was trying to talk underwater.

Shaking her head in an attempt to clear it, she took a moment to process his words while Lea braced himself against his knees tiredly.

Slowly pushing herself up into a sitting position, Blair fought another wave of dizziness and feared she would faint for a moment only to have the whirling sensation subside.

Not feeling quite brave enough to force herself into a stand, she tucked her legs to the side of her, focusing on her breathing.

"You alright?" Lea asked, narrowing his gaze at the blue haired woman before him; she had teetered comically just attempting to sit up, giving rise to his worry.

"Yes…I'm a little dizzy…but I'm fine." Blair said, cradling her head in her left hand before shifting her gaze to look at Lea, whom had easily regained his composure. "But how?"

Lea sighed in frustration at the question, though his look of annoyance didn't seem to be directed at her.

"Old habits just die hard I guess." He said plainly, scratching the back of his head as he attempted to pull together an explanation.

"Ever since we arrived in your world, something seemed off about that Triche girl. So when I heard about your meeting this morning I had Kairi and Sora leave early so I could stay behind to keep an eye on things…then once it was over, I would take my own leave." Lea explained before crossing his arms over his chest.

"Glad I did too, otherwise you'd be blue in the vacuum of space right now."

Ice cold fear creeped up Blair's spine at the mention of space, her memory unwillingly recounting the massive fleet of Heartless ships, the odd mixture of colors and the lack of oxygen. It nearly pulled her into an uncomfortable spiral of panic before she pushed the thoughts away, refusing to think about it.

Instead, her thoughts narrowed in on Triche and her last words to her.

While she knew that Triche had fully intended on locking her out of Splendent Dawn with that blast of wind, she couldn't pin down the 'why' of it, much less why Triche chose to send her to the vortex of space.

Blair frowned.

It was entirely possible that Triche didn't know that the rift she had opened would have booted Blair to a swift and painful death, more than likely, Triche would have assumed Blair would have dawned her armor and transformed her keyblade into a glider but…

Blair looked down at her hands.

That was another mystery that needed solving.

"What is this place?" Blair asked, finally turning her attention back to Lea who regarded her patiently.

"It's a Corridor of Darkness. You can also consider it an old…bad habit; I didn't expect I'd have to use it but it was the fastest way to get to you." He said, his eyes flitting from her to scan over the strange environment.

"Thank you for saving me." Blair said gratefully, bowing her head in thanks as Lea tossed her a wry smile.

"Heh, just call me Dark Rescue." He joked, unfolding his arms as he stepped forward.

As Blair raised her head, she was surprised to be greeted by Lea's hand, which had been lowered for her to take.

Accepting it appreciatively, Lea administered a soft tug that had Blair standing on her feet and thoughtfully didn't let go of her till she was steady enough to continue to be upright on her own.

Conscious of the still moving symbols coating nearly every surface of the corridor, Blair took another moment to investigate her surroundings.

While there was an apparent portal behind her, she noticed that there weren't any others, making the Corridor of Darkness appear more like an empty room with a half-finished road.

"I've never seen this type of traveling before…can it go to all worlds?" Blair asked, attempting to wrap her mind around the strange space.

"Just as good as any beam of light can, if the world is open to it anyway." Lea answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"Then…do you think it would be possible to open a corridor back into Splendent Dawn?" Blair ventured, her thoughts tugging into place at the realization of this new method of travel.

Lea looked startled by her question.

"You wanna go back there?" Lea asked, baffled that Blair would even suggest such a thing. "Okay, look, just in case that space trip rattled your brain, let me remind you that Triche purposely opened a rift leading into a Heartless hotspot, then pushed you _through_ it unarmed."

"But I wasn't unarmed though, I had my keyblade." Blair explained, summoning her keyblade in a show of proof.

Lea sighed, looking ready to give Blair further lecturing, before shaking his head.

"I know it sounds dumb but…I'm worried. I know Triche doesn't care for me but I can't trust her to be the only wielder of that world. Not after what she said…" Blair said, turning her gaze back to Lea who eyed her questioningly. "During the meeting she was talking about keeping our world cut off permanently. She said it would be safer to keep it that way and suggested that we refuse any further outside reports. She was certain that the reason our Master became a Malice was because someone influenced him."

Blair paused, turning her eyes downcast as an unpleasant wave of emotion passed over her.

"And…even if her assumptions are true, I can't agree. It isn't safe for Splendent Dawn to remain isolated with no way to ask for help and with the responsibility now doubled for her…I just doubt that Triche will be able to handle it on her own. If something were to happen, I'd be just as responsible for what-

Lea sighed in frustration, halting Blair's rambling with a wave of his hand.

"Alright already, I get the picture." He said before turning his body to the side. "We may as well give it a shot, eh?" He tagged on, tossing Blair a half smile that she gratefully returned.

Lea then placed his hand forward, a look of concentration gracing his features, before he dropped his hand in surprise.

Confused, Lea examined his hand curiously before shoving his hand forward again.

"Hold on." He muttered, turning to the opposite side and with a swift movement of his hand, a dark portal appeared.

Blair's hopes lifted at the sight but were quickly dashed again as Lea once more shook his head, looking perturbed.

"Don't get too excited. I wasn't able to open a path to your world." Lea explained before turning his body in Blair's direction. "I thought I lost the ability to summon the Corridor of Darkness for a moment there, but I was able to summon one that leads to my world just fine." He said, more to himself than to Blair.

"Then…it's already too late." Blair muttered, cold shock beginning to overwhelm her bloodstream as she closed her eyes in an attempt to starve off her growing panic.

It was just as Triche had said.

Blair would never be able to return to her own world again.


	6. Flowers and Gardens

_**A/N: Holy smokes! I really wish I knew the person who reviewed this story last. You have lifted my spirits like no other! ^-^ When I logged in to see such a wonderful review for this story, I literally sat down and wrote out this entire chapter! It did take a little while to edit but your feedback really inspired me to keep going with this series since interest had kind of died for it but your words really encouraged me to throw myself back into the inspiration puddle for KH and write another chapter! So, thank you so so much! and I hope everyone enjoys the newest installment!**_

Passing through the Dark Corridor was like passing through time to Blair.

As she stepped into the portal to leave behind the faded green room with white symbols, she emerged into a world that was both distant and new but strikingly familiar all the same.

Her shoes touched grey cobblestone, the stones raised much higher than what she was used to and when she shifted her gaze forward, felt her breath hitch inside her throat.

She was inside of what appeared to be a stone outlook, the area around her forming a type of arched room while on either side of her were large windowless holes in the wall.

Immediately, she walked to the one stationed on her right, drinking in the sight of newly made buildings laid upon purple tile only to pause and admire the blue formations jutting out of the ground like crystals.

She felt cemented in place as she observed the town, brown roofed buildings with speckles of purple crafted in-between cream-colored houses as enormous grey walls rose to encircle it.

It felt like a beautiful dream where she was placed inside of an intricately designed castle courtyard but without a hazy veil to cover her eyes.

She turned her head to look upon the road below her, fascinated by the colorful mosaic structure of it as she silently counted the several Arborvitae tree's that lined the street.

"Pretty great, huh?" Lea asked, taking residence beside her while lifting an arm to rest against the top of the hole in the wall to support himself, following her gaze into the distance.

"It's absolutely breathtaking…" Blair breathed, afraid that if she spoke above anything more than a whisper, the illusion of her being here would dissipate.

This world felt so incredibly different from her own, though they shared a few similarities but unlike Splendent Dawn, everything about Radiant Garden felt more hardened, industrial and advanced while containing a certain fragility.

Like a tired, overworked machine in possession of a blossoming flower.

That's when a thought occurred to her.

"This world is-" Blair whispered before abruptly stopping in order to clear her throat. "This world is called Radiant Garden, right? Is it a misnomer?" she asked, letting her green eyes rake across the foreign landscape in search of anything that resembled a garden.

"I wouldn't say that, you've only seen the outlook. You'll practically be rolling in flowers further in." Lea said, pushing himself off the wall. "We need to find the others anyway, so I don't see any harm in showing you the sights along the way."

Blair couldn't help the excitement threatening to burst from every seam of her being at the suggestion.

She could hardly believe that she was now in a place full of flowers instead of white petal trees, of hard stone and tile instead of glossy rock and paint. The experience itself felt incredibly otherworldly yet serene despite the circumstances that brought her here.

She briefly felt a rush of negative emotion as she recalled the force of the wind that Triche had used to propel her out of her world and felt a small start of worry about how she would return before she promptly shoved the tangled mess of thoughts into the back of her mind.

It would be no use to dwell on it now, who knew if she would even be able to return and while the thought depressed her, Blair tried to refocus her mind to the positive and to the task at hand.

Rotating her head, she realized that everything around her was being seen with a pristine clarity, making her stomach do flips as she reached out to touch the stone wall in front of her, anticipating for her hand to glide through it, like it would in a dream.

Gripping a protruding stone between her fingers, Blair marveled at the chill it contained, allowing the feeling to embed itself in her memory as she turned to face Lea fully, flashing him a bright smile as her doubts were cast aside.

"Thank you. Though, I'll expect a grand tour of the entire place once we do." she said, the words playful on her tongue, making Lea's eyebrows raise in amusement at her tone before releasing a laugh.

"I'm sure they'd be more than happy to give you one after this whole mess is sorted out; everyone at Merlin's has been a part of the Restoration Committee so they know Radiant Garden like the palm of their hand." Lea said and Blair felt herself deflate a little at the comment.

She had assumed Lea would have understood that she meant she would have liked Kairi and Sora, as well as himself, to guide her through the new sights of Radiant Garden, but judging from his statement it didn't sound as feasible as she first imagined it to be.

Or perhaps she hadn't made it clear enough.

"Oh…" Blair sighed, a little embarrassed while trying her best not to sound disappointed before she shifted gears into another subject, hoping to avoid any lingering awkwardness on her part.

"So, what exactly is this Restoration Committee? Did a Malice come and destroy something that needed repair or something?" Blair asked as Lea turned and began to walk forward, leading the way down a cobblestone path as Blair followed from behind.

"No, nothing like that. Remember when I told you that our world had been lost to darkness? Well, it was revived as something else known as Hollow Bastian for a while, and it caused this world to decay. Long story short, Sora and many of the people here were able to resurrect the true Radiant Garden through the efforts of the Restoration Committee, so while it's not quite the same Garden as before, it comes pretty close thanks to their TLC." Lea explained.

Blair listened silently as she surveyed her surroundings, hardly believing that the world she was in had decayed as badly as Lea stated.

Everything at least _looked_ put together and very reinforced, so the Restoration Committee had done a great job in showing no previous signs of decay but she figured that was also what gave it such a hardened feel after being rebuilt.

It had been lost to darkness, and who knew what kind of damage so many Heartless could do in any given amount of time.

Even the resurrection sounded rough. It must have been hard for the citizens to look at their world and think that it was so different that it needed a new name that fit the state it was in.

A name like Hollow Bastian.

A lonely, empty sounding name.

"Were you among their efforts?" Blair asked.

"Me? Eh, a bit, but I was mostly…" Lea paused before he suddenly stopped walking, a grimace painting itself along his face.

Unwilling to continue whatever he was saying, Lea directed Blair's attention downward with a motion of his hand.

They had just passed over a long stone bridge, and following Lea's cues, Blair felt her heart thump rapidly at the sight below her as the subject of the committee dissipated from her mind.

A mosaic coated the entirety of a town square, purples, blues, whites and hints of yellow made up most of the tiled flooring to create the shape of a beautiful flower similar to that of a lotus opening its petals.

A large, silver fountain rested in the middle of it like a grand tower, soft pink liquid overflowing from the many bowls it held before gently cascading down into a great reservoir.

"Shall we?" Lea asked, tilting his head toward the fountain that had so readily captured Blair's attention.

Blair spared a glance in his direction before nodding, offering a smile in response as Lea led the way down a series of sculpted stairs.

Once she reached the bottom, Blair stopped, her feet glued into place as she stood dumbstruck by the scenery around her.

Like hundreds of tiny stars, flowers seemed to glow in hues of pink, purple, white and yellow, each petal veined with a gentle light that nestled within dozens upon dozens of flowerbeds.

Blair moved forward, twisting herself in a circle to take in the entire square and the illuminated flowers before bending down to observe a nearby bed, enthralled to find a red flower peaking between a row of pink and white.

"Why don't you pick that one?" Lea suggested, eyeing the flower as Blair whipped her head back to face him, indecision sketched across her face.

"What? No, I-"

"Why not? It'd be an eyesore otherwise." Lea interrupted, making a show of looking around, and Blair followed his gaze and found he was right. There wasn't a single red flower in the entirety of the beds save for this one, but it still made her feel nervous to pluck it.

"I'm not sure…" Blair drifted but felt a spark of reassurance when Lea's eyes brightened.

"Just look at it as doing a favor for Aerith." He said, a genuine smile gracing his features.

"Aerith?" Blair questioned, dragging her eyes back towards the flower.

"Right. She's the flower girl around here and is the primary caretaker of most of the flowers in Radiant Garden. It takes a lot of work to keep the beds tidy despite the touch she has when it comes to greenery. So, it'd be a favor."

Blair hummed in agreement, now half-listening to Lea as she teased the petals of the stray flower with her fingertips.

If it was a favor for someone so hardworking to maintain the beds, and if Lea thought it was a good idea, then she didn't see the harm in removing it.

Digging her fingers into the soft soil beneath the flower, Blair set to gently untangling its roots, being sure not to disturb the roots of other nearby flowers before pulling it up to pluck it.

As the flower was removed from the bed, Blair paused, awestruck as a freshly budding white flower rose from the soil to take its place.

"See?" Lea said and Blair returned her attention to the glowing red flower within her hand and almost dropped it when it began to twirl on its own.

Petals plucked themselves off the center of the flower just as a brief wind stole them from the rest of the stem, and following the wind-blown petals with a keen eye, Blair watched as they directed themselves into the fountain.

Blair followed them, now curious of the state of the towering structure, and was once more surprised to see various colorful fish residing inside its reservoir.

A curious, peach colored fish darted upward, taking notice of one of the fresh petals that had graced the top of the water before dragging one into its mouth in one swift gulp before roaming further down into the reservoir.

"Didn't think you'd see a recyclable rosewater fountain, huh?" Lea asked, amusement touching the edges of his voice as he watched Blair stare down at the fish.

"No, never…this…is just amazing." Blair replied, her thoughts now drifting to what kind of fish Radiant Garden had.

The ones within the fountain were obviously decorative, judging by the vibrant patterns of their scales, but the way they looked overall were so drastically different from what she knew of fish in Splendent Dawn that she couldn't help but wonder if it would be rude to ask if Lea knew of a nearby lake.

She'd love to have the opportunity to cast a line somewhere, to expand her knowledge on creating better methods on catching new fish, not to mention what those fish would taste like.

Just as her thoughts began to drift to that of sashimi, Lea began to speak.

"Just wait till you see the rest of this place, Radiant Garden has a lot to offer." He said before he tilted his gaze up towards the sky, momentarily distracted, then back at Blair.

"I don't doubt that." Blair replied as she turned her gaze towards the redhead.

"You know, this is the usual meetup place after we complete missions but it doesn't look like they've passed through yet." Lea said, turning his head to examine the square, finding it completely empty save for them.

"You don't think they got hurt on the way out of my world, do you?" Blair asked, feeling a small flutter of uneasiness rise in her chest. "There were a lot of heartless ships when I got outside."

"Nah, those two can hold their own better than most, so I doubt that's the case. They might have just gotten tired of waiting. But now that I think about it, Merlin might have an idea of their current whereabouts…so you mind waiting here while I ask?" Lea asked, letting his eyes drag across the square another time before letting them rest on a curious wooden door not too far from them.

"Not at all." Blair said, watching as Lea tossed her a small smile before journeying towards the door.

Feeling a little weird for watching him leave, Blair returned her attention back to the fountain, preferring to watch the many fish that dipped and dived across the water in search of petals.

Curiously, she reached out her hand and began to trail her soil-ridden fingertips through the water.

Pink ripples sparked from her fingers, the dirt disappearing and drawing the attention of a few inquisitive fish before they darted back in surprise.

Pulling her fingers out of the water, Blair felt her skin tingle briefly. Turning her hand over to investigate, she noticed that the many hard earned calluses along her fingers, procured from hours of training and fishing, looked much softer.

An interest unlike anything else she had ever experienced before seized her in that moment, as she realized that the pads of her fingers had inexplicably healed.

Then, looking back at the water, she plunged both of her hands into the water of the fountain.

She shook them briefly before drawing them out, admiring how they glistened with pink droplets and winced as the tingling sensation became much more intense in her hands before drastically subsiding.

Rubbing her fingers over her right palm, Blair was pleased to find nothing but soft new skin.

There were no longer rough patches, no healed over blisters, even the old scar gracing the majority of the top half of her right hand had faded significantly.

They no longer felt like warrior hands, like hands that had seen combat or spent most of their life thrusting spears into the earth and she felt a small sense of comfort in that it felt like a fresh start.

Blair found herself tempted to strip out of her socks and shoes in order to test the fountain again, all in hopes of healing some of the faded bruises along her knees, and if it hadn't been considered indecent, she'd be even more tempted to bathe in it.

Just as she was half way convinced to at least remove her shoes, Blair was stopped by an unfamiliar voice.

"Are you hurt?"

Blair tilted her head up, half expecting to see a young girl only to see what could only be described as a blonde pixie in front of her.

The pixie was tiny, long and thin with a colorful scarf wrapped around her neck as she floated gently within the air in front of Blair, the movement a little disorienting to look at since she possessed no visible wings.

Curious, she flitted closer and Blair responded by jolting back in surprise, almost falling into the reservoir as the pixie paused to giggle at her reaction.

"Rikku." A chiding voice sounded, and when Blair shifted her gaze away from the blonde fairylike creature, she found two similar girls staring down at her a short distance away.

"Give her some space, she's obviously new here." The silver haired one said, folding her gloved arms over her chest as she eyed Blair with what felt like mild suspicion.

The blonde, Rikku, smiled before dipping in the air and turning her attention back to Blair.

"Oh, so you're new! Welcome!" She said brightly as the burnette of the group proceeded to float over, a ponytail the length of her body drifting behind her.

"Yes, welcome to Radiant Garden. My name is Yuna, you've already met Rikku and this one's name is Paine." Yuna explained, her voice soft and kind as she introduced the girls with a subtle hand motion and nod in their direction.

However, before Blair could string together a coherent thought to introduce herself, Rikku pipped up.

"Consider yourself lucky newbie! It's not every day someone comes across-!"

Suddenly the three shifted, and in a whirl of many tiny fabrics, all three fashioned themselves into a cute pose.

"The Gullwings!" they cried out in unison, their faces brimming with pride as they looked to Blair for a reaction.

"The…Gull…wings?" Blair asked, her voice unsure though a small smile lifted her features as the three separated.

"That's right!" Yuna said, nodding in encouragement.

"We're treasure hunters!" Rikku explained enthusiastically, flitting her body from side to side as if she could barely contain the excitement she felt.

"More like fanatics really." Paine continued, flipping her silver bangs out of her eyes.

"O-Oh…it's nice to meet you all, I'm Blair." she said, still trying to piece together the fact that she was talking to three tiny fairy girls.

"Did you come here to be a part of the Restoration Committee, Blair?" Yuna asked, pulling her hands behind her back as she tilted her head to the side.

"Um…no…I actually just arrived so I'm just-"

"From another world? Which one?" Rikku interrupted, her eyes gleaming with unrestrained curiosity.

"Splendent Dawn." Blair said, a little cautious as the words left her mouth.

She didn't have any problem disclosing where she came from, especially if the other party was aware of other worlds but it still made her feel uneasy.

The three girls exchanged a look amongst themselves before Paine eyed her a bit more intensely than before.

"You wouldn't have happened to have brought any treasure with you from your world did you?" Paine asked, and Blair practically started at the question.

"Treasure?" She asked as the three girls nodded in reply.

Hesitantly she patted down her person, finding only a few potions strapped behind her and nothing within her pockets. She had been in such a rush when she left her house that she hadn't thought to equip any rings or charms.

Even then, she wasn't exactly sure if they would have qualified that as a treasure.

"Sorry, I'm not really sure if I have anything other than potions." Blair said apologetically, shaking her head as Yuna and Paine sighed in disappointment.

"Mind if I have a look?" Rikku asked and Blair hesitated again before giving her a brief nod.

The tiny girl wasted no time in zipping around her as she set to work, peeking inside of Blair's pockets and poking the straps that held her armor together before examining the green bow latched securely at the end of Blair's braid.

"What's this?" Rikku asked and Blair looked down to see the girl picking at the keychain attached to her belt loop, the blue star resting securely within her small hands.

"My chain? Oh, well, I wouldn't consider it to be valuable in terms of treasure or anything, it doesn't really possess any abilities or boosters but it was a gift given to me by some very important people…so I'm afraid I can't give it up." Blair explained, hoping to detour Rikku from asking for it when the blonde nodded thoughtfully.

"Important people, huh?" She said softly before she turned her head back to look at Yuna, who simply smiled in response.

The unspoken gaze between them was lost on Blair as Paine lifted an arm to point at her.

"Those feathers look pretty unique, I've never seen the kind."

Thankful for the shift in subject, Blair thumbed the feathers along her belt, an idea beginning to form within her head.

"They're Trill feathers, they're from a pretty common bird back home." Blair said and watched as their expressions turned to that of mild confusion.

Undoing her belt, Blair set to removing three blue feathers from it before splaying them out between her fingers, outstretched towards the group of girls.

"Trill birds are completely resistant to ice so these feathers have that ability too. They're found practically everywhere in Splendent Dawn but they're a bit useless unless you have an opponent that can use ice magic." Blair continued as the girls came up and selected a feather, seemingly delighted that they were small enough for them to use.

"So, ice resistance doesn't stack if you have multiple? A single feather can make you completely resistant?" Yuna asked, giggling softly as Rikku stuck a feather into the tail end of her long ponytail.

"Yeah, you only need one to have the full effect. Wearing multiple doesn't increase the resistance level but they do look nice together so having a lot is kind of a fashion statement in Splendent Dawn, mostly in belts and hair ornaments so I don't mind parting with them."

"Thanks." Paine said, expressing gratitude for all three of the girls as they arranged a feather into rikku's braided hair.

"We'll call this a trade then!" Yuna said, floating upwards before extending an arm and doing a little twirl in the air, a blue box appearing right in front of Blair.

"What? But I don't need-" Blair started only to have Rikku zip towards her face, halting her speech.

"Then consider it a thank you present." She said sweetly as Yuna and Paine set to opening the chest, pulling out a chain with a large triangular charm stuck towards the end.

They hovered forward with little difficulty, presenting the necklace to Blair before separating the chain to tie it around her neck.

As they began to fasten it behind her, Blair took a moment to admire the amulet.

The charm itself was silver, and designed with curves and spikes that looked like a fleur-de-lis along the sides and bottom edges while a black crescent moon nestled in its center.

It was unique, if not a little bit different then the colorful jewelry she was accustomed to seeing and while she didn't dislike it, she felt that such an item was an upgrade compared to her feathers.

"Girls, this is really…um…" Blair paused trying to think of the correct words to say without offending them. "Don't you think this is a bit much for just a few feathers?"

"Not really, after all, none of us can really wear something that big. So, it'll just collect dust if we keep it." Yuna explained as both Paine and Rikku nodded in agreement, making Blair wonder what exactly it was they were giving her.

"Hey you three, she just got here, so ease off on the whole treasure swiping thing for a bit." A familiar voice scolded, and Blair felt herself perk up as she turned around to see Lea saunter towards her.

The three girls shifted forward, removing themselves from behind Blair before Yuna turned to face her.

"I suppose we better take our leave then." She said as Rikku zipped past both of them, aiming towards Lea as she teasingly hovered around him, making him raise an eyebrow in question.

Rikku's habit of scouting seemed to be something Lea was accustomed to, as he didn't bother to deter her, though his eyes trailed carefully after the girl, as if on high alert that she'd utilize sticky fingers at a moments notice.

She stopped her circling once she reached his hips, pretending to pluck at his pants pocket before turning to look back at Blair as her eyes lit up with realization.

"Oooo, so Lea was the important person you were talking about!" Rikku said, a bit too loudly for Blair's comfort as she waved a familiar blue star around from the chain stationed at Lea's beltloop.

"That's…uh…" Blair attempted to defend herself before her voice died in her throat, forbidding her from continuing.

Any denial to Rikku's claim would technically be a lie, it was true that Lea had been at least one of the important person's tied to the gift but acknowledging and accepting those words would probably only worsen the situation.

Instead Blair opted to remain silent, unwilling to give Lea the wrong idea as she turned her head away, giving a small nod in the process in an effort to appear nonchalant.

Although, she couldn't help but feel a small spark of happiness light up within her chest.

While the keychain had been a gift from many important persons, Blair felt that it was a little special knowing that Lea was wearing a similar one. She hadn't quite expected him to have a similar copy of her keychain but knowing that he did made her feel better connected to him and absently she wondered if Kairi and Sora had matching ones as well.

"What are you talking about?" Lea asked, his voice unamused at Rikku's playful tone, his expression carefully guarded as Rikku set to distancing herself from him, allowing his stance to relax.

"You both have the same treasure. Blair told us that it was given to her by some important people, and now we know that's you!" Rikku explained causing Lea's eyes to widen.

"How sweet, friends exchanging charms! We should all do the same!" Yuna expressed, probably in an attempt to change the subject as she tossed Blair a wink.

At least Yuna seemed to understand what Rikku could not.

"Then we better get started on finding something similar." Paine said and with a swift twirl vanished in a puff of smoke that caused Blair to double take, confused by her sudden disappearance.

The other two followed suit, making the square a lot quieter than before, the tranquil splashing of the fountain being the only sound shared between Lea and Blair.

As the air began to settle around them, Blair heard Lea sigh and quickly braved a glance back towards him, still feeling a little uneasy with the exchange with Rikku.

"I leave you alone for two minutes and the treasure fanatics already sunk their claws into you, huh? They're more crafty than I thought, I hope they didn't cause you too much trouble." Lea offered, scratching the back of his head as if he felt guilty for leaving her.

Blair shook her head, her blue braid swinging gently from the motion.

"No, it was pretty pleasant actually. They were very friendly." Blair reassured.

"Glad to hear, they're good at heart but they can be a little much sometimes, especially if you're new."

"I didn't realize how much I stuck out." Blair said, suddenly remembering the belt within her hand as she began to thread it back through the loops of her shorts.

"You don't really. The Gullwings just have a nose for travelers. They aren't very strong so when they can, they blip across the safer worlds in search of treasure, but during their down time here in Radiant Garden they enjoy pestering newcomers about any treasure leads or try to sucker someone into a trade." Lea explained as he began to walk toward her, watching as she secured a subtle buckle along her belt.

"I admit it was a little…different to have someone ask me out of the blue like that but overall it wasn't bad." Blair said, soothing the remaining blue feathers that made up most of her belt when she suddenly froze.

Lea had leaned forward, making her stiffen in surprise at his proximity when he reached down towards her, gently lifting the amulet off of her neck.

"That's new." He said, gazing intensely at the charm as if trying to figure out what it was before darting his eyes up to look at Blair, probably in hopes of an explanation.

"While you were discussing things with Merlin, the Gullwings and I exchanged some items." Blair said, as she began to relax her muscles, letting her shoulders fall in comfort.

"I see," Lea said, turning the amulet over in his fingers for a moment before giving her a firm nod, "A Moon Amulet? Must have had to trade something pretty extravagant for them to give up something like that."

"Not really, just a few ice feathers from my belt." Blair explained, shifting her gaze to look up into Lea's eyes, making him withdraw from her.

"Ice feathers?" Lea asked before his eyes darted down to Blair's belt in curiosity.

"Yeah. They're good for ice resistance. My belt is littered with them so when I offered some to them, I got this amulet in return. I thought it was a bit of an uneven exchange too but they insisted that none of them could even wear it so I was doing them a favor by accepting it."

The corner of Lea's mouth rose up, forming the line into a smirk.

"I should have figured it was something like that." He said before turning his head to look back towards the door he had come out of. "By the way, I'm afraid I can't give you the grand tour, Merlin told me that Sora and the others were summoned to the castle by Leon."

"Leon?" Blair asked, confused by the name and even more confused by the fact that Radiant Garden had a castle.

Between glowing flowers, healing fountains, fairy girls and castles, was there nothing this world didn't have?

"Yeah, Leon's kind of the head around here or at least he is in terms of the Restoration Committee so it wouldn't be wise for me to miss the meeting, but I can at least introduce you to Merlin before I go. With any luck we'll be able to figure out your situation after we get back." Lea said, offering a nod in the direction of Merlin's house.

"That's alright with me. I do have a few questions, though." Blair said as she began to walk forward, following Lea who made a beeline towards the wooden door.

"And Merlin will be there to answer most of them, and whatever he doesn't, I'll fill in for him when I get back." Lea said.

"Do you mind if I ask you just one question before you take me inside?" Blair asked making Lea turn his head to face her before nodding.

"Who exactly is Merlin?"


End file.
